


Memories From Inaba

by WritingSoul



Series: Akira & Inaba [1]
Category: Persona 3, Persona 4, Persona 5, Persona Series
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M, Gen, If You Squint - Freeform, akira grows up in inaba, also the p3 twin AU so shinji lives because i can't have them dying on me okay, and a lot of shinji/fuuka, and there's a lot of headcanons, ann's a good girl, i just want fuuka and shinji to be happy together okay, there's a lot of kannao if you squint
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-03
Updated: 2019-10-21
Packaged: 2019-11-08 09:40:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 27,052
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17978948
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WritingSoul/pseuds/WritingSoul
Summary: When Akira is taken into custody by the police in November and “dies” in their care, some very angry people from his past show up to Leblanc to demand answers.SPOILERS FOR NOVEMBER, P3's END, and ELEMENTS OF P4!





	1. The First Meeting

## 

With the way that things had gone recently, Ann Takamaki needed a break. 

She sighed through her nose, relaxing back into the seat in Leblanc she was in. Tears almost stung at her eyes - this place hadn’t always had Akira in it, but he carried the scent and aura of Leblanc with him. It was like home, with a dash of mischief and a serious, safe place when it needed to be. Just like him. 

She sniffled again, taking another sip of the still warm coffee. It coated her tongue in a thick layer, but somehow served to relax her. 

Futaba sat across from her, a bit anxious in her worry for the blonde. She had her laptop open, and if Ann remembered right, she was currently looking for videos to make Ann laugh. Sure, it wasn’t anything super deep, and it certainly wasn’t going to make her feel 100% better, but it was still helpful, and an example of Futaba honestly trying her best. That was all Ann ever asked for. 

She seemed to finally find what she was looking for, motioning for Ann to come closer as she grinned. “Found it!” 

Ann smiled at her, absorbed in the thick fabric of her sweatshirt she’d gotten from some American fashion brand she was too tired to remember the name of. It wasn’t practical for months that were hotter, but Akira had said she would look cute in it when he’d poked around her closet, so….

She clutched at the fabric, moving to get closer to Futaba as the door swung open harshly. 

The opening of the door caused Sojiro, Futaba, and their blonde haired companion to jump, looking up and toward the source of the disturbance, all mentally frowning. The last thing Sojiro needed right now was rowdy customers or the police.

As it turned out, neither of the two disturbances showed themselves at the door.  Two teenagers scurried in, followed by none other than the original Detective Prince herself, a man with black hair and an intimidating presence, another, even more intimidating man with shaggy hair in - wait, was that a ponytail? - and another, smaller woman with teal-colored hair. 

Recognition seemed to light up her friend’s face as she scrambled to her feet, prompting Ann to look up in confusion and a bit of worry. As far as she knew, Futaba did have some good friends before her mom passed away, but she also had a lot of bad. What were the chances that these guys were good. She looked to the owner of the cafe, who seemed to be gobsmacked. That...really didn’t help much, did it? The blonde sighed and looked to the teens, wondering if they’d give her any insight. 

One of the two looked more like a pretty boy than anything else, with a lean physique, brown hair swept to the side, and long eyelashes. He wore a uniform that seemed familiar, yet not. Something tugged at the back of Ann’s memory as she looked at the logo on his plazer. A black and white circle divided up into alternating triangles, with a red border….she frowned. She knew where that was from but she just couldn’t place it. 

The other teen, a girl this time, had long brown hair that she had tied back in a tight ponytail with a yellow ribbon, leaving her long bangs room to swoop down the left side of her face before coming back up to join with said ponytail. Her build was slender, yet powerful - she reminded Ann of Haru. Haru could take her out at any given moment, but she also looked so soft and sweet. This new girl wore a uniform too, but hers was a sailor uniform that Ann  _ knew _ looked familiar, but just had no idea how to place. 

“Nanako-chan?! And is that…..Ken-kun? Is that you?” Sojiro asked, recognition and astonishment lighting up in his eyes.

“We can talk about that later.” The original detective prince cut in smoothly, smiling cordially. Ann glanced to her, fists tightening. That smile looked too much like Akechi’s. What if she was the same? What if they couldn’t trust any of them? Ann’s eyes trained themselves on the floor. 

“Oh, mother of Zeus….” Futaba muttered, causing Ann to smile weakly. Akira had always been fond of that phrase. 

“And what would we talk about now?” Sojiro replied evenly, wiping the astonished look from his face. 

“We need to talk about Akira! Where is he?” The girl said, panic in every inch of her tone. Her voice was somehow sweeter than Ann had pictured it to be, but panicked. Genuinely panicked. Her stomach turned over and over, making her frown deeper. 

Ann could see Sojiro already attempting to formulate a response, but Futaba pushed up her glasses, spouting an easy excuse. “Mwehehe. Akira’s at school.” 

Sojiro cast her an alarmed glance, but every other pair of eyes in the room turned to her, making her squirm. Ann instinctively picked up where she’d left off. By no means was she a good actor, but right now she would have to be. 

“Umm, forgive my manners, but I don’t see why we should be telling you where he is, anyway. Akira’s business is his business, not ours.” She said, playing the ditzy blond card. She used this tactic all too often, but most times it worked. 

This time, it did not. The eyes of the detective seemed to pierce through her, as if she’d seen this all once before. 

“Listen, I  _ really _ think you know where he is, and you should tell us.” The black haired man shrugged. 

“You still haven’t passed the whole “what’s it to ya?” test yet, so, uh, let’s see here - no.” Futaba quipped, some of her inner snark surfacing. Ann almost smiled. She’d truly spent too much time around her adoptive older brother. 

Though her expression quickly sombered. What if his smart mouth got him into more trouble? What if they injected him with something or tortured him until he answered? Considering what Akechi had planned, it wasn’t entirely unreasonable. Her heart resumed its place in her shoes. 

The other, more intimidating man with the shaggy hair, growled at them. “Enough of the shit! You -” 

And then the teal-haired woman grabbed his arm, muttering something soft and sweet to him, and he relaxed. The only teen boy in the room looked at his cohort with worry. 

“Why don’t we all sit down? I’m sure Sakura-san wouldn’t mind you calling your fellow Phantom Thieves to chat with us, no?” The detective prince suggested, making Nanako’s head snap over in her direction. 

“What-” 

“Boss.” Ann drew herself up to her full height, squaring her shoulders. She made no indication that she noticed the surprised expressions curling across the outsider’s faces at her sudden change, nor an indication of the panic rolling through her stomach. A switch had flipped, and now it was time to change characters. Sure, she could afford to be background moral support when Akira was here, but now?  _ Now? _

They needed a leader right now, and Makoto was in no place mentally to start playing mind games with the original detective prince, much less lead them. He glanced at the young blonde. “What’s your suggestion?”

Sojiro thought it over, eyes skipping from intruder to intruder. Nanako-chan and Ken-kun were good kids. Souji had often spoken highly of his friends as well, and for as much as he wanted to protect his kids…..if Souji had spoken highly of  _ the  _ detective prince, then that must mean he had some other friends in high places. And if he’d tried to save Akira….stuck his neck out for him even though he was a cop…...they should be safe. 

But Naoto Shirogane was a cop, and cops and robbers didn’t play nice. With a weary sigh, he rubbed at his eyes and then looked back to Ann, who despite losing her lover in the past days, despite all of it, was still fighting. And he had to give them a chance. 

These kids were going to be the death of him. 

“I’ll close up shop.” 

Ann gave a short nod, blue eyes turning to her younger friend, who had a tight grip on her phone, as if she could make them disappear with one press of a button. They’d been found out - again - and this time, Futaba didn’t have a plan. Ann could practically see her starting to spiral, but instead just smiled at her reassuringly, as if she knew what to do.  “Futaba, why don’t you help Boss? I’ll gather everyone.” 

Her tone was nothing like the tone she’d had when she spoke to the outsiders, full of sunshine and warm reassurance that everything would be fine, despite the storm around them. Her voice sounded like a snug blanket, hot cocoa, and a fireplace on a cold winter day. Nothing but comfort. It implied that everything was going to be alright. Soon enough, Akira would come back and she wouldn’t have to act tough. And Makoto would be alright with her sister, and they could take down Shido. 

…..It had to be okay. This had to work. 

Futaba shakily nodded and moved to the back, brushing against Sojiro as he attempted to get out so that he could lock up.

“Why don’t you take a seat, guys? I’m sure Boss and Futaba can take your order in a moment. I need to make a few calls.” Ann said. Her tone was friendly enough, now, as if assuring Futaba had somehow made her feel better. “Make yourselves comfortable.” 

And then she’d slipped up the stairs, as if she were a shadow, leaving everyone behind. Downstairs, everyone sat in an uneasy atmosphere, while Sojiro curtly took their orders in a way that suggested they were no more than regular customers on a regular day. 

For a second, he allowed himself to believe it, too. It was a normal day. His - albeit unofficially adopted - kid wasn’t in jail, Futaba had just come up to help him with the shop, and any second that damned detective would walk through his door and sit in the second-to-last seat at the bar, and Sojiro would give him his coffee. And then the rest of the Phantom Thieves would crash in, talking idly and laughing it up. Makoto would apologize for the intrusion, Kitagawa would stare at the painting he’d given them, the Sayuri, before Sojiro gave him a plate of curry and Futaba would pester her friend to eat, calling him something akin to a beanpole. The cat would come back in and try to talk to him - but the damn thing should have known that Sojiro couldn’t understand him. 

But it would still be cute, and Ryuji would laugh as he ragged on the cat, which would get mad at him in turn, and Okumura-san would laugh about it as well. And then they would all get their coffee and curry, and Sojiro would grouse at them for something - probably taking up space - and then they’d get upstairs with fond smiles on their faces, because they knew Boss wasn’t as rough as he seemed to be. 

But they’d all thank him, and go upstairs, and all afternoon the shop would be surrounded with laughter and this aura of joy that only that team could spark with each other. 

Of course, that would have been ideal. Any normal day. But Sojiro sighed to himself again, knowing that these kids were up against too much, and they were only kids. Just kids. Kids that shouldn’t have to go around, saving the world and confronting things like murder, or abuse, or even sexual assault from the adults that they were supposed to trust. 

But they did. And now they had no choice but to tough it out and hope - pray - that Akira came back to them. 

* * *

From upstairs, Ann’s thought process was slowing, but she kept her voice level as she made one call after another, forcing herself through the monotonous process.

Everything was slowing and shifting now as she sat on Akira’s bed, calling Ryuji in a serious tone. She was serious, she was calm. Nothing was wrong. 

It was going to be just fine. 

The thieves expressed various amounts of confusion and concern at her request, but none of them found the willpower to object. Haru even insisted on riding the train with Yusuke to ensure he got to his destination alright. 

When she’d made the last call, Ann took a shaky breath in, furiously wiping at her eyes. She would  _ not _ be weak here and cry. She wouldn’t. She  _ couldn’t _ . How did Akira do this day after day? How did he just make a remark and move on about his day as if nothing bothered him? It had only been five minutes of calls and tension, and yet she was so  _ unsure.  _ She didn’t know where to go. She didn’t know how to do this.

Makoto would be so much better. Morgana. Hell, even Haru would be faring better. 

But Ann was empathetic, just as her boyfriend was. She’d picked up on the genuine notes of panic and confusion in their voices, the feeling of panic from the men in the room. Sojiro’s distress. The guardedness of Mrs. Shirogane, the absolute rage and confusion she felt at the situation. It all hit her in the gut. 

It was too much. 

_ How do you do this, Akira? Please…..please just come back. I can’t do this….I can’t…. _

And that was when the dam had broken. She’d been trying to be so happy and positive for everyone that wasn’t Futaba or Boss throughout this whole process, even though she hated it. She hated the possibility of failure. Of….death. She needed to keep smiling, keep being happy. But she couldn’t. It wasn’t working, and this is when she needed it to work - when she didn’t want to feel helpless. 

Malcontent and anguish swirled around the room, forcing her to take in quiet, gasping sobs as she sat on Akira’s mattress, and tried, desperately, to get herself back together.  

Could she do this? No, no she couldn’t. 

_ “Come now, child. You haven’t the time for this.”  _

_ Hecate? _ She wondered, latching herself to the familiar voice in her head in an effort to pull herself out of her spiral. 

_ “Yes. Come now, what was the reason that I arose within the sea of your soul to begin with?”  _ Her persona chided, and if Ann closed her eyes, she was sure that Hecate would be standing before her, hand on her hip. 

_ Because…. _ Ann wet her lips, though she wasn’t talking.  _ I wanted to help be that beacon of light for everyone else? Because I finally found what it meant to be strong? _

_ “Correct. Where has that girl gone, I wonder? You’ll accept that you can’t lead, willingly? Has your journey - your bond - been for naught?”  _

_ No.  _ No. _ I can do this. Maybe I’m not the best, but….I’m something. I can do this. I have to. _

_ “Very good.”  _ The persona purred, bringing that smirk to her face that Panther almost always wore. Controlling, confident. Alluring and beautiful.

Hecate’s voice disappeared from her head with that bit of praise, but remained in her heart, pushing her to burn brighter than ever. 

She had a job to do, and Ann Takamaki never quit. 

* * *

As soon as the Phantom Thieves spotted Ann, they knew that this wasn’t a casual visit. This was business. 

Scenarios ran through Makoto’s drained mind. Was Akira dead? Or had someone found them out? Had something happened to her personally that they needed to take care of? Was she even okay? 

She sat at the bar, nursing a cappuccino. This was nothing odd - it was common knowledge among the Thieves that the two were dating, as much as Morgana detested it - so Ann spent many days in Leblanc. 

However, she sat with her legs crossed, back stiff. A peculiar look rested on her face and touched her eyes. It almost seemed that if they narrowed their eyes to a certain degree, they could make out the red latex of her suit and the mask that covered her face. 

Ann was almost gone. Panther had come out to play. 

But then she turned to them as they entered, and that sweet, sunny expression came back over her as she smiled, and Ann was back. It was a soothing gesture, one that felt like a mother embracing her child before the storm struck. 

The entering thieves nodded at her as she stepped down from the bar, gesturing for them to stay standing. “We’ll be down in just a moment. There’s just some….” Ann searched for the right word. “...matters that we need to discuss.” And with that, she was gone upstairs, leaving the rest of the disgruntled phantom thieves to follow her. 

Once they were in the attic, she gestured to be quiet and shook her phone. It was a signal to stay quiet and talk to her over text. 

**[4:03] Ann:** Thank you guys for coming. So….they, somehow, know that we’re the Phantom Thieves. I don’t know how they know. I don’t  _ want _ to know how they know. Futaba, did you get anything while we were waiting for everyone to get here?    
**[4:04] Futaba:** Not really…. there were some pretty hefty firewalls up around information surrounding them - I’d need their identities to get more specific information, and I’d need a couple hours to get through the firewall. I’m sorry….  
  
The thieves all shared worried and disgruntled looks, but Ann simply sat there for a minute, mulling over what they had the time to do. If they pooled their knowledge, maybe they’d have something. 

**[4:06] Ann:** Alright, then, if Futaba can’t hack them, what do we know? 

Surprise rolled over the faces of the thieves, but they all began to type out their messages, a little bit of victory dancing around the room.   
  
**[4:08] Futaba:** The teenage boy and girl are about our age. Nanako is a first year and Ken is a third-year. Boy attends Gekkoukan, a private school in Tatsumi Port Island. Girl attends Yasogami high. Dark-blue haired woman is Naoto Shirogane, the original detective prince.   
**[4:08] Yusuke:** I believe the man next to her to be Kanji Tatsumi. Kosei students are quite fond of his charms and often order them. I also believe he and Shirogane-san are married, though I don’t keep up with the idyllic fantasies of my classmates.   
**[4:08] Haru:** Shirogane-san was an alumni of Yasogami high! I also believe that a student died on Gekkoukan’s rooftop back in 2010 and left his twin sister behind. Gekkoukan also suffered from Apathy Syndrome. Um….and I believe that Mitsuru Kirijo’s father died within that same school year, and she’s an alumni of Gekkoukan, though I don’t know if she’s related.   
**[4:09] Makoto:** My sister often collaborates with Shirogane-san on cases. According to her, she has a very close group of friends…..very similar to our own.   
**[4:10] Ryuji:** Yo, you don’t think they could have like….personas or somethin’, right?   
**[4:10] Makoto:** It would certainly explain a lot….but we don’t have time for theories.  
**[4:10] Ann:** Alright, I think we’re ready! Let’s kick ass.

Exclamations of agreement lit up the chat, and Ann slid her phone back into her pocket and led them back down the stairs. They seemed more confident now, something that didn’t seem to deter their guests in the slightest. Ann waited until everyone had settled down, and, once everyone’s attention was on her, she broke the silence that had overtaken the shop. 

“Alright. I’ll start.” Ann said. If there was one thing she’d picked up from her boyfriend, it was the way that he established his role in a conversation. “Who are you? You seem to know us well, so this is just a formality, but it would be nice to know who we’re dealing with. 

The room seemed to have dropped in temperature, as if the fire-user had sucked all the warmth from the cafe into her own body. 

“I don’t see what this is going to do but waste our-” 

“I didn’t ask what you  _ thought _ . I asked who you  _ were _ .” Ann was quick to cut him off and allow her tone to become somewhat harsh, causing the man with the shaggy hair to turn away from her and let out a small, annoyed ‘tch.’ Her foot had been placed down, and there wasn’t any way she was going to lose her foothold. 

“Very well. I’m Naoto Shirogane, but I’m sure you knew that already.” The detective eyed her, but was the first to respond,, nudging her companion to do the same. 

“Kanji Tatsumi.” He said shortly, eyes trained on all of them. 

The teal haired woman smiled gently at them. “Fuuka Yamagishi. I’m sorry we had to meet like this….” 

Ann give Fuuka some semblance of a smile, warming to the older woman already. She was a lot like Shiho, but she had more patience. The woman frowned at her companion as well, making him sigh and address them without looking at them. “Shinjiro Aragaki.”

Ann gave a curt nod and then turned expectantly towards the two her age, features softening only slightly. The rest of the thieves shared looks, but there wasn’t anything to be done for now. “And you two?” 

The boy spoke for both of them, possessing a slightly lower voice than she’d imagined. “Ken Amada,” he pointed to himself and then to the girl, “and Nanako Dojima.” 

Nanako seemed to shy into a corner, and the thieves were quick to catch the traces of regret that washed over Tatsumi’s face, presumably at having brought her here. If the thieves were gambling people, it was sure that they’d bet on Shirogane feeling the same. 

“Well, I’m sure you know who we are,” Ann smiled warmly, though it was a bit calculated. “but we’ll introduce ourselves just in case.”   
  
The thieves went down the line of them, introducing themselves with varying degrees of kindness. Haru was perhaps the most kind, and even then, her tone carried a weight. 

“I suppose it’s our turn to ask a question. Is Akira dead?” Naoto questioned, eyes narrowing on the group.

The answer didn’t come from Ann, who’s throat seemed to swell, but from Ryuji. “Hell no. Akira….man, he ain’t like that. He’s fine.” 

“But the news-” Fuuka cut in nervously, only to be cut off by Makoto.

“With all due respect, Yamagishi-san, did you think we would allow ourselves to be double-crossed so easily? Or that Akira would have willingly taken his own life?” 

Her words were like whip, cracking on the floor and causing the outside group to lean in with more interest now. 

“Mwehehe….all part of the plan.” Futaba chimed in, smirk downright devious. Haru turned to Sojiro, smiling sadly at the man’s confused and alarmed expression.

“Boss doesn’t even know about this, I don’t believe. He just knows that Akira’s still out there. We’re sorry for not informing you earlier.” 

“Back up,” Kanji cut in, elbows now on the table. “What do you mean, ‘the plan?’” 

“We can’t tell you that until he gets back.” Ann said, tone calm and yet quiet. “If he gets back.” 

“ _ If?”  _ Nanako repeated, suddenly speaking. “But I thought you just said he’s alive!” 

“The plan will work….” Ann started, but found herself unable to admit that there was a chance that her other half wasn’t coming back to her. That she’d never look him in the eye again, or - or kiss him, or feel his embrace…. It was unthinkable. 

“.....but it isn’t foolproof.” Makoto finished for her, noting the pain that she was struggling to hide. 

“Right.” Naoto nodded. “How long do you estimate it will be before we know?” 

“A day or two, at most.” Haru answered. “We do know that at least one thing went according to plan: Akechi’s attempted assassination.” 

Silence rushed over the room as the few from the outside gave each other uneasy looks. 

“That damn rat won’t even know what hit ‘em when Akira comes back.” Ryuji said, some sort of bitter satisfaction in his tone. 

“If I had it my way, he’ll be ash when I’m finished with him.” Ann glowered, focus on the floor. 

“This is insane….you want us to believe that Goro Akechi sold you out to the police, and then tried to kill Akira?!” Tatsumi exclaimed, glasses almost sliding off of his face. 

“Yeah, well we also want’cha to believe in a weird world where we beat the shit out of some shadows and then steal the source of someone’s wicked desires.” Ryuji said, letting his mouth run ahead of his mind again in his anger.

“Ryuji!” Ann exclaimed. “You can’t just-” 

“I guess I can believe that.” Shinjiro cut in, regarding the blonde with a smirk. 

“Me too.” Fuuka chimed, as serious as ever. 

“I as well.” Naoto said, a fond smile coming to her face as she thought back on her own adventures. 

“Hold up, hold up, hold up, hold up. What?!” Futaba exclaimed. 

“I believe I made myself quite clear.” 

Ann sighed. Oh, what the hell? They knew their identities, they knew about the Metaverse…. what’s next? Were they persona-users, too? “Alright, quiet down.”   
  
At her stern tone, the thieves were quick to settle. If there was one thing that any person should definitely avoid, it was the tempers of their female teammates. “We’ll talk about that little bit of information when Akira gets back, because I know if we talked about it now he’d get distressed. And your friend over there looks a bit winded.”

It was true. Nanako looked like the wind had just been knocked out of her. Her male friend glanced at her sympathetically, as if knowing something she didn’t.    


“How do you guys know Akira, anyway?” Their resident hacker asked, pushing her glasses up on her nose again. She stood tall and proud just like the rest of them, and Ann was quick to notice the proud smile that had surfaced on Sojiro’s face. “I mean….I know how you guys know Sojiro, but….” 

Naoto smiled at her. “You really are just as vibrant as Souji described you, Sakura-chan.” 

Futaba’s nose crinkled comically. “Call me Futaba. I hate all that honorific stuff. Makes my head hurt.” 

That garnered a small laugh from Naoto, almost giving the other residents of the shop whiplash. 

“What…..the fuck. How in the hell do  _ you _ know them?” Ryuji asked, voicing everyone’s thoughts on the matter. 

“A couple years ago, when Sojiro first opened the shop, Dojima and Amada used to come around and try to help whenever they came to see Souji, I think. I don’t know. All I know is that they used to come in a lot before Mom, and there were a couple guys I remember. But….yeah.” Futaba explained, not quite ready to review her past in depth. Stunned silence swept over the room.

“...I truly am sorry about your mother.” Naoto sighed, breaking the silence. “She was a fantastic woman. 

Futaba looked to her feet, daggers coming from her eyes. “It was all Akechi’s fault…..that….” She sighed. “I don’t even have a good enough insult.” 

A small laugh came from Ann, and Ryuji grinned. “How about….uh, shit-eating, two-faced, envy-having rat bastard?” 

Futaba perked up. “Ooh, I like that one! You’re not as dumb as you look, Ryuji!” 

“Hey!” 

For a second, the thieves descended into laughter at their banter, feeling as if nothing were wrong with the world. But it was only a moment, and passed as Naoto spoke once more. 

“How much do you know about Akira’s home life?” 

Ann looked down. “The others don’t know much, but I know that Akira grew up in Inaba, and about the murders, and his mom, and….” Some of the pieces of the puzzle clicked together in her head, making her inhale sharply. Things she hadn’t remembered, fanciful stories he’d been told as a child that matched up too well to their own…. “ _ Oh.”  _

The adults shared a look. “You’re a lot smarter than I originally gave you credit for, Takamaki.” Shinji commented, causing Ann to bristle and then give a tentative, lazy smile to the elder persona user. 

“Thanks.” 

“Anyway…. for those of you that don’t know…” Naoto inhaled. “Akira grew up in the small town of Inaba -” 

“Wait, is that not where those murders occurred years ago?” Yusuke cut in. Naoto nodded. 

“ - correct. It’s my hometown as well, as I’m sure you know. Nanako-san and Kanji-kun also live there as well. His father….” Naoto’s eyes darkened. “He abandoned the boy and his mother before Akira was five. Akira’s mother raised him and eventually found a husband. They are still quite close as a family, but rumors circulate very quickly in a small town. I’m sure you can imagine the things kids and housewives say.

The phantom thieves were all too aware what kids and housewives said. Ann’s hands balled into fists on her lap. “As a result, he distanced himself from everyone else. Luckily, Nanako-chan and Souji-chan were able to befriend him gradually. And wherever Souji goes, his friends ultimately follow.” The woman chuckled then, shaking her head with closed eyes. When she opened them, they were filled to the brim with fondness for their leader and her friends. “He was quickly folded into our circle, and when we met Shinjiro-san, Minako-san, Fuuka-san, and their friends….he, Ken-kun, and Nanako-chan quickly became very good friends indeed. I’m sure you can imagine that we lived that way for a while….” 

“-and then that bastard Shido had to ruin it.” Shinji muttered, beating the thieves to the punch. 

“Shinji!” Fuuka reprimanded, seeming horrified that he’d said that in front of the children. “Language!” 

Ken stared blankly at his family, but his lip quirked with amusement. “Fuuka-san, did you not hear what Sakamoto-kun just said?” 

Fuuka turned her head to him, pouting just a little. “Just because someone sets a bad example doesn’t mean another needs to follow.” 

Haru giggled, which seemed to be infectious, as it quickly spread to the other residents of the shop. 

The thieves couldn’t pinpoint where, but somewhere along the line, this had become less and less hostile, and more friendly. 

Makoto’s mind was quickly working now, flying this way and that, connecting far-flung dots until she had a clear picture.  _ “Oh.”  _

Ann caught her eye, and they know that they’d both abruptly reached the same conclusion: They were persona-users, too. 

How, exactly, neither were sure, but they were sure of it. 

Stories continued to be swapped about Akira in particular, some that made them laugh, others that made them melt, and some that made them cry. 

Hours passed, and eventually, one after the other, the outsiders departed after giving their phone numbers to Ann with a promise to call when Akira showed up. 

Ann stared at the door after they’d left, barely noting that the thieves resumed their normal  positions other than her. 

“Do you think we can trust them?” Haru asked, petting Morgana, who’d said nothing that afternoon. 

“I’m not sure.” Makoto admitted. “Ann?” 

The blonde seemed to snap out of staring into space, mind humming with thoughts. “Um...honestly? Maybe it’s just because of what Akira told me, but….I don’t know. I think we can. And either way, they know about us, so our hands are tied.” 

Silence washed over them, but Panther reared her head. No, their hands were not tied. “Or so they think. Futaba, can you start getting information on them? Ages, addresses, where they went to school, their favorite food, their last date…. we need every scrap we can get.” 

The others turned to her in surprise. “Ann, are you sure you’re not just Akira in disguise right now? Because that’s totally something he would say.” Futaba asked, shifting in her seat. 

She smiled, exhaustion lacing her features. “No, but I’m trying to emulate him. It’s working, surprisingly.” 

Ryuji snickered. “Yeah, I bet it’s easy to do when you guys are sucking face all the time, huh?” 

A growl rose to the back of Ann’s throat at the comment, containing energy that she didn’t even know she had at this point. “Ryuji, I  _ know _ you did not just say that.” 

“Uh! Yes ma’am! Definitely didn’t say that!” Ryuji nodded quickly, practically feeling the fireballs forming in her hands. 

The thieves lapsed into laughter, and then a quiet, peaceful silence. “....Joker’s okay, right?” 

The speaker had taken them all by surprise. Morgana, who hadn’t spoken at all, had finally voiced his doubt, ears flattening against his head. Ann smiled. “Don’t be silly. He promised me he’d come back, no matter what. So he will.” 

“I didn’t know you had him that whipped!” Futaba said through a mouthful of curry that she’d gotten from god-knows-where. Sojiro shuffling back behind the counter gave her a pretty good idea, causing her to roll her eyes. 

Ann sighed, but she was smiling. “Maybe I do, maybe I don’t.” 

Their conversation continued on joyously, comfortably. But underneath it all was a wave of uncertainty. Panic. Doubt. 

When Sojiro offered Ann the shop for the night, she accepted, calling her nanny and telling her that something had come up and she was staying with a friend for the night. 

When Sojiro left, locking the door behind him, she shut off the lights downstairs and went up to the attic, taking her hair down and digging out one of Akira’s prized hoodies. It was baggy around the teen, but that didn’t bother her in the slightest as she slipped out of her clothes and into the hoodie. 

Ann made herself comfortable on his bed that night, pretending just for now that the hoodie’s warmth around her was Akira, instead, and that this was just her spending the night. 

She fooled herself, tricked herself, even, and burrowed under the covers, falling into a deep sleep.

* * *

 

**Days later….**

Ann waited with bated breath in Leblanc, holding her hands together and praying. Makoto had finally called everyone together, meaning that Sae Niijima was going to walk through that door at any moment with Akira in her footsteps, or they would be given his phone and told that she had done too little, too late. 

She prayed for the former, and when the bell signified someone entering, she almost got to her feet. 

The opposite almost occurred when he stepped through the door, battered and worse for wear, but he was alive. They’d pulled it off. The plan worked. 

The male took one look at her and opened his arms, and she wasted no time in flying into them, sobbing openly into the collar of his shirt. Her arms round around him, clutching and squeezing, as if he would disappear the second she let go. 

Like this was a dream. Their hug quickly became a group hug with a laughing Akira in the middle, and the girls tearing up on the outside of the hug. He was home. It worked. 

It worked. The hardest part so far was over. 

Ann stuck herself to his side afterwards, not willing to let go or leave him alone. Hecate lit a bright fire under her feet as she began to look at him, one of passion. 

It curled and flickered through her all day, filling her with warmth and a childish joy that Akira always seemed to trigger when he was around her. Haru cooed and fawned over the couple, leaving Ryuji to resist his jokes, and Futaba to snicker and make little comments. 

Eventually, though, the time came when they’d had to recount their encounter with Akira’s family. No one wanted to breach the subject, but as always, it was Ryuji who took the plunge. 

“So, uh….Ann? You gotta make a call, right?” Ryuji said to her, causing the others to quiet. 

Akira rose his eyebrows, silver eyes glancing to the girl curled into his side. “Ann, you have friends other than us? I’m quite offended.” 

If he weren’t injured, she would have shoved him. Instead, she sighed and reluctantly got up from the table, placing a peck on his cheek and heading upstairs without so much of a word. 

Akira’s eyebrows threatened to merge with his hairline. “Can someone explain why  _ that  _ got her to move?” 

Makoto smiled. “Well, once news of your….incident…. hit the news, your friends from Inaba came running.” 

He furrowed his eyebrows, though warmth coursed through him at the thought that his family had come for him. “But I never told them-” 

Ryuji shook his head. “Nah, man, neither did we. Detective Prince figured us out.” 

“But there’s no- and I wouldn’t-” Akira’s head was attempting to pull together the dots, and that lead him to a conclusion that he’d never have expected. 

“Has it ever occurred to you that your friends may be persona-users, Akira?” Makoto asked. Given who they were talking about, she seemed oddly calm.

Hearing Makoto ask it aloud made the realization hit like a ton of bricks. No way…..no fucking way….

“Well, what’re the odds…..” Akira muttered, dizzy at the realization. The other thieves seemed to be struck dumb at this realization, and most were confused. Other than Futaba, of course, who cackled. 

“I knew it! As soon as Ann had me look everyone up, I found some pretty interesting things. Like Mitsuru Kirijo, and the Shadow Operatives. And how a transfer to Shujin, Souji Seta, worked here part-time when I was little, who also happens to be, guess what, a member of the Shadow Operatives. And what are the Shadow Operatives linked to? Cognitive psience.” The younger girl was smug, but Akira was reeling. 

All of his friends….everyone he’d known…. persona users? What about Ken? Nanako? Yukiko? And Fuuka….?

He still listened as they recounted the entire encounter, pride swelling up in him as he thought about Ann leading the circus for a while, and of his team taking turns speaking and protecting him and the Phantom Thieves as a whole.  While he wasn’t a fan of having his quote unquote “tragic backstory” shared with the rest of the group, none of them seemed to mind hearing about it. And they certainly didn’t pity him, which he was thankful for. 

At some point, Ann had all but melted against his side again, rubbing his back gently. “I called Shirogane-san….she said that she wants us to meet up with your family whenever you’re ready. I told them we’d be ready sometime tomorrow if you’re up for it.” 

Akira felt like he was going to fall over, frankly, but the prospect of seeing his family again filled him with such excitement and warmth that he couldn’t say no.That, and he’d get some good sleep tonight, so he should be a little better. “....They’re sending a car, aren’t they?” 

Ann kissed his cheek. “You know them too well, huh?” 

“Yeah,” he said, smiling fondly. 

He might not be in the best shape tomorrow, but judging by everyone's expressions....tomorrow would definitely be an interesting day. 

Akira could only hope it would be a good kind of interesting. 


	2. Introductions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Phantom Thieves encounter Akira's family from back home. Haru gets a little passionate. Morgana gets pet.

The car was quick to show up at Leblanc the next afternoon, and even if Akira had wanted to, he couldn’t have said no. Before he had the space to breathe or think, servants of the Kirijo family had escorted the boy and his friends to a car and unceremoniously crammed them inside it.

His friends surrounded him, guarding him as if he were going to be stolen away from them again. With a lazy smirk, he seemed to assure them that he wouldn’t, but it wasn’t enough. It was never enough. Not after a scrape with death. 

Ann still clasped his hands in her own and leaned against him, but she was slowly beginning to wean away from his side, all while watching him curiously. 

“What are you nervous about?” She asked. Ann peaked up at him through long eyelashes, gaze curious. The model spoke low, lips barely moving. Akira’s heart fluttered. 

God, he’d missed her. 

“Nothing,” he said in response, voice equally as low. But at the edge of his voice, something shook, and the way that Ann turned his hands to run her fingers over his palms told him that she believed him about as much as he believed himself. 

“Akira….” It was a quiet sigh of his name, so slight that he would have missed it if she hadn’t captured his attention already. “Are you worried about us meeting them…? Your family, I mean?” 

If he’d had it his way, and if he hadn’t noticed the slight shift of Makoto’s head to better listen in on them, he’d have laughed. Instead, the corners of his lips turned up into a wry smile. “Well, this definitely wasn’t how I planned on introducing them to you….” 

The blonde chose that moment to glance down at their intertwined hands, hues of red and pink taking over her skin. It brought the rosy undertones in her cheeks out, and he couldn’t help but think that Yusuke would love to paint her like this - if he weren’t quarreling with their resident hacker at the moment. 

Akira would have bought that painting in a heartbeat, however hypothetical it was. 

“I….” she seemed at a loss, and he almost could have sworn he felt her pulse along her fingertips, fluttering and pausing for a moment as the full impact of her boyfriend’s words hit her. “Well, this year is temporary, you know? Maybe I’ll come to Inaba next year to visit.” 

“Maybe I’ll have to offer you a place to stay.” He said evenly, though his thoughts were anything  _ but _ even. 

“Maybe I’ll just stay at the inn you talk about so often. The….Amagi Inn, right?” She retorted, smirking. When Ann smirked, it reminded him of Panther, of a cat. Some part of him loved the way she’d just seem so….confident. So completely in control.  

“Ann,” he whined softly. “Don’t do that to me.” 

She giggled then, a louder sound than she’d made for the entire ride. The girl pecked him on the cheek, settling her head on his shoulder. “I would never. I guess your place works for me.” The blonde conceded, though her tone was still tongue-in-cheek. 

Akira snorted but didn’t hesitate in wrapping an arm around her in turn, rubbing small, lazy circles on her back. Ann sighed, leaning against him as if he were a particularly comfortable pillow.  

By some small miracle, the thieves had yet to take notice - and if they had, then they certainly let the two have their moment. At least for a second. It seemed as if no time had gone by at all before Futaba broke the sleepy silence that permeated the air in the car. 

“Soooo,” Futaba spoke, tone a lazy drawl that indicated she already knew the answer to whatever she was going to ask, “What are your….friends like?” 

“You know,” Haru chimed, tapping her chin thoughtfully as she looked to the ceiling. “I don’t think any of your other friends were named when Shirogane-san talked about them.” 

It….felt odd, hearing a friend of his refer to Naoto as “Shirogane-san.” To the small town boy, she was just….Naoto. A genius, maybe, and an ace detective, but not….old. 

Though, the second generation of his extensive friend group  _ was _ starting to crop up….

Akira hummed in thought, not once breaking the lazy movement of the circles he traced over Ann’s skin. This, unbeknownst only to him, made her smile, relaxing further into him as if it were where she was meant to be from the moment she was born. 

How do you describe the group of people that you grew up with?

Akira pressed his glasses further up the bridge of his nose, making doubly sure that he didn’t wince. Couldn’t the cops have left his face alone? 

A horrible thought struck him.. When Mitsuru inevitably learned of what they’d done….their little stunt...the cop’s brutality….Akira shivered. 

Maybe she’d have some mercy on him, considering he was pretty roughed up. 

Maybe. 

He finally huffed out a small laugh at the absurdity of it all. He was being hunted by the entire police force, (well, perhaps barring Dojima-san, Souji, Chie, and Akihiko…) and what was he doing? Worrying about a member of his family who wouldn’t lay a finger on him. 

“They’re….individuals.” He said, voice catching everyone off guard as he began to grin like a madman. “I never really bring them up, not if I can help it.” 

He stared at the ceiling, eyes full of mirth and longing for a time that clearly wasn’t the present. 

“Why would you not speak of them?” Yusuke asked, eyebrows knitting. He seemed quite perplexed. 

“Oh, you’ll see…” Akira responded instantly, wearing that Trickster smirk of his. The members of his team gave him odd looks, other than Futaba, who currently sat back, evidently rather pleased with herself, and Ann, smiling because she knew. Though Akira loved his family, he wasn’t one to talk about himself, and especially not when the facts raised more questions than they actually answered.

Clearly, both had information that the rest of the thieves didn’t, and were willing to wait until they absolutely needed to know. How they got the information was anyone’s guess, though there was some speculation. 

Ann, well, obviously, she’d been told, and Futaba... well….

….it didn’t take another Einstein to figure out how she’d acquired the information. 

Silence settled over the car, and soon enough, they were parked in front of an average apartment building. 

The thieves seemed quite shocked by this as they filed out of the car, staring at the building in front of them in a state of confusion. Here? Shirogane had really sent a car just to bring them….here? With servants in toe? 

Akira simply strolled in, leaving the servants to quickly skitter behind. They talked as the group continued to walk, gesturing about. All of them wore radiant smiles, and soon, the thieves found themselves at ease. 

“This may not look like much,” Akira said, eyes still pointing forward, “But when you’ve got, well….us on your hands, you’ve got to take precautions. Like this building. I’d bet  _ she _ probably owns every apartment in here.”   
  
His tone was a bit dry as if he’d seen one too many elaborate galas, or private beaches. Which was accurate, because he absolutely had. One of the servants, an older lady with greying hair, nodded. “Hm, I’m surprised you haven’t been to this one, Kurusu-kun.” 

‘She?’ Who was  _ she?  _ The ebb and flow of Ann’s thoughts quickly transformed to a bright orchestra, picking up in speed in tempo the more she speculated and thought. It couldn’t have been Shirogane-san…..nor could it be Kujikawa-senpai….

Akira gave a dry laugh. “Yeah, well, Mitsuru doesn’t exactly have a habit of being modest with her gifts, now does she?” 

It was like whiplash to everyone around her but Futaba, who simply gave her signature cackle and pushed up her glasses, then singing a happy tune and rocking back and forth between her heel and toes. She seemed very pleased with herself. 

_ Ah, yes…. _ Ann thought in deadpan,  _ I forgot we had satan’s child on our side. Why didn’t I think of Kirijo?  _

Meanwhile, the others were scrambling and sputtering. “Dude, you know  _ Mitsuru Kirijo?”  _ Ryuji asked, a little awed. 

Akira shrugged. “It’s not a big deal.” 

“Not a big deal?!” Haru objected loudly. “You know Kirijo-san and it’s ‘not a big deal?!’” 

Akira turned around to look at them all, raising his eyebrow. The heiress was quite unlike herself, from the way she held herself, to her voice, to her expression, and even to the way that she mimicked him in her last sentence. 

Ann seemed flabbergasted. Of course, she’d know of Kirijo, but….to actually see sweet Haru raise her voice….that was shocking. It reminded her of Noir, and she distantly wondered if they’d lapsed into the Metaverse in the time between getting out of the car and into the building. 

Haru seemed to realize what she’d done with a few seconds delay, clapping her hands over her mouth. “Oh….I’m sorry Akira-kun, I just-” 

“A little bit of a fan, are you?” Makoto teased, smiling over at her with that twinkle of friendly warmth they’d all grown used to.

Haru flushed. “Perhaps….maybe so….” The heiress squeaked, hiding her blushing face in her hands. A chuckle sounded. 

“I could introduce you if you want.” Their leader said, once again messing with his glasses. Haru’s face left her hands, but she still looked to the ground shyly. 

“Y-you don’t have to do that, Akira-kun….” 

“Nonsense.” The elderly servant cut in, hard features softening. “I believe that our mistress would love to meet Okumura’s only heir and take her under her wing.” 

“I’d have to agree.” The ravenet agreed, hands casually in his pockets. 

“Y-you think so….?” The fluffy haired girl responded. “Well….maybe….only i-if she wants to, though...” 

“Looks like we’d better get going then,” Akira hummed, turning around and continuing his march. The elderly maid was leading him, sternly pulling him this way and that when he attempted to go in the wrong direction. 

If the others weren’t still processing the fact that Akira casually knew Japan’s most prominent businesswoman, Ann suspected that they’d probably be snickering at the display.

It only took a couple more turns this way and that, and a few marches up flights of stairs and elevators, before they’d finally reached their destination. Akira stopped before the door, hand on the doorknob. He’d wanted to enter, but….

There was no harm in listening to whatever conversation was being had, was there? 

He shut his eyes and rested his head against the door, focusing. If he thought about it and focused hard, he could feel the familiar pull that meant his third eye had activated. He knew no one would bother him - everyone would probably think he was just a bit winded and somewhat nervous. 

It was so easy to see it now - see their personas and feel it through the door. The sheer amount of power and difference working in tandem almost overwhelmed him. 

The lightning that Kanji and Akihiko possessed didn’t feel like Ryuji’s own. Akihiko’s felt more controlled…..more reigned in. It surged through his mind’s eye, filling everything with the steady hum of electricity. Kanji’s lacked that control, but it wasn’t  _ reckless _ , like Ryuji. It was more of  rainy night lightning, only striking when it needed to and leaving at every other point. Ryuji’s, well….it was wild. Uncontained. Fearless. Comforting. 

Yukiko and Junpei’s fire was vastly different from Ann’s as well. Yukiko’s was all elegant flames; elegance that left you burned for days and forced you to think of it every time you viewed the burns on your arms. It hummed below the surface, shining just to warm allies up and divert conflict. It was a warm night at home - the fire of the hearth. Junpei’s was energetic, unyielding. Passionate. Yet it stayed mostly quiet, acting before speaking. Fighting with fists rather than the element itself. 

But it wasn’t passionate in the way that Ann was passionate, no….that was different. And Ann? Well….Ann was something else entirely. Using his third eye to look at her - to see  _ her _ \- threatened to force him to his knees and make him weep. She, like Yukiko, was all smiles and laughter, but it burned  _ brighter,  _ somehow, as if she were lighting up the world all on her own with that million-watt smile of hers. Junpei’s passion seemed to resonate with her, but on a different level entirely. If Junpei had the flames of battle, and Yukiko had the flame of the hearth, then Ann’s was on the level of the universe. It was quiet nights in front of the fireplace with your lover, but it was fierce to anyone that dared steal that moment. It sculpted around allies in a hug but left enemies as ash. It was passionate, and it was kind, and God - if you angered it? It was withering. Scorching. Murderous. 

He loved it.

Yusuke’s ice was calm but hard-hitting. It was the hail that broke your window in a storm, but it was also the view of a frozen lake. It hit low in your gut but pleased your eye. In contrast, Chie’s felt like a nice snow day, one that allowed you to go outside and build snowmen and laugh it up, but also one that only came once in a while. Teddie’s ice was stronger but was more of the strong wind chills, or the sun peeking through the storm after it was over. Mitsuru’s was different - different in the way it controlled and shaped things, unyielding and uncontrolled by anyone but herself. It was the icy cold that controlled where you went - staying home from school without a chance of snow. Yet in the background, there were traces of sunshine breaking through the clouds, of that big sister smile when you did something right. Pride in the bonds she’d established. 

Morgana’s wind was trained and patient, bursting with an uncontrolled pride, yet fiercely protecting what it sought to take care of - it’s allies. It was skill, and showing off, and late nights making tools that you’d need soon. Yosuke’s was all force - wind that blew at you so strongly that you turned away and began to walk backwards just to get through it. It was strength and energy, intertwined with the anxiety and restlessness of not making enough progress. It was not understanding entirely, but trying to think in abstract terms whilst also staying grounded. Yukari’s was a nice wind on a spring day - pleasant enough, but daring you to challenge it and watch what happened. It existed with force - the force of a mother ordering you back to bed, because so help her  _ god _ , you were going to get grounded if you went to school feeling like that. It was insistent, with hands on hips and pursed lips and insults that really never meant to be mean - only to show some affection. It was wind and rain slapping your face at a funeral, forcing you to give up on concealing your grief because it wasn’t healthy to keep from crying. 

Shinjiro held a force that was similar to Makoto’s but lacked the sheer power and light that represented the nuclear attacks. He didn’t carry any particular element with him, only his two hands and his persona, which was stable, but it was angry. It was angry, and yet it cared. It was a harsh punishment, but making sure you got home on time and feeding you a good meal before sending you to bed. Makoto was strength, adrenaline,  _ justice.  _ Bright lights, and kicking down doors, and knowledge that seemed to expand to all corners of the earth. It was a small smile, but an urge to wake up and get out there already, or a glare because you were being stupid in class. It pulled apart quickly, and then squeezed back together even faster.

Naoto and Haru were in classes all of their own. Haru’s power was subtle but snuck it’s way around the room until you had no choice but to pay attention. It was sweet but seemed able to snap from it’s sugary state to  _ angry _ in just a matter of seconds. It felt slightly sadistic, but not in a way that was unnerving. Just unexpected. It could force you to wither into the ground, or it could help you flourish with the gentle help of a hand. It was almost like a chess board - one rigged in her favor because she  _ knew _ your moves. Naoto’s was a mix of things, it was chess and checkers and Clue all at once. It was light and fire, but darkness that spawned a hellish wind. It was attacking your everything, and not hitting that spot that truly downed you quite yet. At the same time, it was quiet and understanding eyes. Intelligence that no one had ever seen before. 

The navigators all shared a sense of direction in their power - all knowing what they wanted, where they wanted to be, and who they wanted to see, but differed in the way that they supported the group. Fuuka’s method of help was quiet and firm, conservative but smart. It seemed as if she could reach to the ocean and become one with it in an instant, yet broadcast her voice from the heavens to whisper to you that it was going to be okay - that you could do this. Rise’s was all cheer and pep, infusing you with energy and elevating you to a level you didn’t know was reachable. It was warm and teasing, and certainly feminine, but it calculated. It was a fight in disguise. Sneaky. If you were one step forward, Rise’s mind was surely calculating how to get you to take four steps back. Futaba was entirely different. She always seemed to know, was always that person you wanted to protect and shelter, even though she could destroy everything you’d worked so hard for with the press of a button. Futaba was all-knowing and smirks, cockiness that was all her own - and was well deserved. She was nerdy references, but someone who wouldn’t take your shit laying down - not anymore. But underneath it all was anxiety. Worry that she didn’t know  _ enough _ , that she wouldn’t be able to say the right thing at the right time. That she’d lose it all. But that anger made her stronger. Made her want to fight. 

Akira’s darkness was sly and fast-moving but laced with anger, and betrayal, and bitterness. It merged with the electricity to fool your eyes as he moved past you in the night. It was the sun disappearing when he was angry, and the moon taking its place, lowering the temperature with the arrival of the night. Yet, it was comforting. It surrounded you like a warm blanket, keeping you unknown and whispering to you that it was okay to let your walls down and breathe for now - no one was here to see you. The light within him worked in tandem with the darkness, reminding both its wielder and the observer that the world was never too much of one thing - it was never too much joy, never too much happiness. But it always wrestled with the darkness, the darkness that reminded you that you  _ needed _ to be sad sometimes. Too much of a good thing wouldn’t keep being good if it wasn’t balanced. 

Minako’s fire was bright and unyielding, reminding him somehow of Ann. It was the warmth that bloomed in your chest when you laughed along. Somehow, it was the sun on a warm, summer day, with the wind in your hair and your favorite song playing. It was balance, and a stern way of things that seemed to calm the slowly brewing fights. Not all work, not all play. It was the fire that flickered in a torch, illuminating dark caverns and leaving shadows to dance on the dimly lit walls. It was a snicker and a prank, only to be followed up with an apology later, because “that was just too funny!” It was giggles, and bonfire nights that sometimes got rained out by the growing storm, with lightning striking all around. It was close to perfection - but it was also gut-twisting grief. It was incompletion. It was doing more and more, all you could, to make sure that no one felt the way you did. It was maternity. Empathy. Infectious cheer. A jack of all trades. 

Souji’s electricity hummed with control, favoring single bolts over the uncontrolled, webbing form that was natural. It was a mixture of all of your senses - all of the elements around you. It was a quiet, rainy night, and eyes trained on you, knowing exactly what to say. It was a kind smile, but too much work, and days where you just collapsed, knowing you couldn’t do anything. It was elements that took on your burdens, got you what you needed, and then kept moving, because sure, they were fond of you, but things had to get done. It felt like careful budgeting and planning. But it was also long strolls at night or a warm bath. It was scratching a cat behind the ears and watching it purr. It was calculated. Strong. Leader-like. 

They were like him. They were different. 

And all of these, barring the Phantom Thieves’ own energy, worked around each other. Where ice froze things over, wind bent around it, bridging the gap between that and the flames and lightning, bending again just so to keep everything alive and breathing.

Akira sighed and shut out his third eye, coming back down to earth and listening to the conversation on the other side of the door. 

_ “I’ll kill them.”  _

_ “Mitsuru, you can’t seriously -”  _

_ “Oh, but I can and I will, Seta. Laying their hands on a  _ child?  _ One they have no definite proof against other than some foolish detective’s word? One who can’t even solve one damned crime, but can take the title that Shirogane worked so hard for? One that might be the reason he’s dead?”  _

Akira closed his eyes. He could picture Mitsuru sitting inside, her hands frosting over while trying to conceal her rage. For him. If it weren’t for the situation, he’d have grinned. 

“ _ Mitsuru….he’s not dead yet. ‘Kira….he wouldn’t die on us like that.”  _

And there was the woman of the hour, Minako Arisato. She sounded stern, if not a bit afraid herself. Would he seriously not come back to them….? 

“ _ Eh, I wouldn’t sweat it too much,”  _ Kanji said, the shrug that he was surely giving evident in his tone. “ _ I think his team knows him and this plan pretty well, even if they’ve known him for less time.”  _

The comment was innocent and confident enough, but Akira would be lying to himself if he said that Kanji’s voice didn’t hold notes of concern. 

“ _ Even if they know him, they surely don’t know all of his actions and motives all of the time.”  _ She shot back, anxiety and a bit of a bitter undertone lacing her voice. 

“ _ Senpai, this isn’t the same as what happened on the rooftop. _ ” 

Akira stilled. No one ever mentioned the rooftop, much less what happened on it. Surprisingly, it had been Ken that spoke. His tone was soft, but wasn’t coddling. 

“ _ Amada, I suggest you hold your tongue.”  _ Her tone was icy, something that made him wince. 

“ _ Why beat around the bush? That’s what you’re worried about, ain’t it?”  _ Shinjiro quickly defended, prompting a sigh. 

“ _ That is  _ none _ of your concern! All I am concerned with is Akira’s well being, not the past.”  _ Mitsuru retorted. 

He could hear the retort rising in the room, and that’s when Minako shut it down. “ _ Both of you, stop. Mitsuru, I know you’re worried, but this isn’t the same. Kira is trying to actively avoid his death, not accept it to be a martyr. Ken-kun called you on it, which was his battle, and not something that Shinji should have jumped into.”  _

Shinji grumbled out a reply, not at all up for going against Minako. If Akira was placing money on it, Mitsuru probably had her head in her hands. “ _ You’re right. I’m sorry, Amada, I’m just -”  _

_ “- stressed. It’s okay, Mitsuru-senpai. We all are.”  _ Ken finished. 

“ _ Sometimes I wish that he’d just walk through that door and cure all of this stress…”  _ Rise sighed wistfully. Akira, with a wicked grin, took this as his cue. 

Opening the door, he stepped into the open apartment. “Consider your wish granted, just this once.” 

Cries rose up around the room, and then everyone was around him at once, clinging tightly, hands all over warm skin, because he was  _ here _ . He was  _ home _ . Laughter rose up shortly after they’d all commenced a sort of group hug, some sighs of relief intermixed with the laughter. A few of the girls, such as Minako and Rise, openly wept. The thieves watched from the back, smiling as well. 

Eventually, it broke, leaving the current persona users to cluster with their respective teams. This was barring Souji and Minako, who became more and more concerned the more they looked him over. 

The latter’s eyes were puffy, but she was hovering over him, fixing his hair, his hoodie, checking for bruises, checking for injuries. He almost smiled and relaxed into it for a moment, reminded of his mother, and the times that Minako would come to Inaba, only to fret over him, his appearance and well being. Souji stood back but made no effort to hide his shock at Akira’s injuries, nor the fact that his mind was currently racing with action plans to do  _ something.  _

“Hey, I’m okay,” Akira said gently, smiling to his two senpai. “I’m still alive, right? That’s better than making it back in two or more pieces. There’s only a few bruises.” He deigned to mention the broken rib and the serum still coursing through his veins. 

Minako giggled, voice thick with tears and full of fondness when she spoke next. “Oh, Kira. Always trying to look out for the group morale, even now, huh?” 

He smiled, pretending to don an angry expression. “That’s real rich, coming from the mom of the group.” 

The two paused for a minute, staring at one another, before cracking identical smiles that spelled trouble for the rest of the group. Small smiles began to rise around the room, heightening the feeling of relief and joy.

“Puh-lease. If anything, I think Shinji’s the real mom here.” She said, leaning in to whisper conspiratorially. Akira leaned in as well, nodding and throwing some not-so-subtle looks Shinjiro’s way. Their personalities seemed to change within a matter of nanoseconds, confusing the thieves, who hadn’t spent nearly as much time with them. It was abrupt, but their banter made things easier, somehow. It felt natural to be back here and laughing along with them. The others simply wore small fond smiles at the sight of the scene. 

It felt….like nothing had happened at all. 

“Always making sure we get to bed on time and making us meals….can you believe him?” 

“Oh, my word!” Akira exclaimed, forcing the older woman to burst into a fit of giggles. He fanned his face dramatically, clearly holding back some laughter. “How could that ever be allowed to happen?” 

Souji rolled his eyes, shaking his head good=naturedly. “Do you guys ever stop picking on Shinji?” 

“And I hear that guy Souji is just as bad!” Akira exclaimed to Minako behind a hand in lieu of a response. It was almost eerily reminiscent of the way housewives gossiped back home. “Isn’t it just awful, the way that he looks after everyone and makes them food, too?!” 

“Oh, how dreadful!” She agreed, giggling behind a hand. Akira’s lips stretched until he couldn’t resist joining in on the laughter when Souji walked away from them, hands thrown up in the air in “frustration.” 

“Ah, not even two minutes with them in the same room, and they’re back on their bullshit,” Shinjiro said, turning the pair’s laughter into downright cackling. “Fun.” 

“Shinjiro!” Fuuka scolded, not at all bothered when the man in question turned a dry look in her direction. “You shouldn’t just say that! What if you get us in trouble?” 

Another look in her direction confirmed that Shinjiro didn’t really care, but he wasn’t exactly saying anything more, which placated the teal-haired woman, whose hair was pulled back into a sleek bun with a hair clip or two. 

“Aw, come on! Loosen up a little, Fuuka-chan!” A black-haired woman giggled, watching the display from where she sat on the couch. The woman behind her rolled her eyes, hair almost hiding her expression. 

“Sheesh, out of everyone here, I wouldn’t be expecting  _ you _ to encourage Shinjiro’s bad swearing habit, Yukiko!” 

“Um, guys?” Ann said, watching the two with concern. With some sort of satisfaction, the idol in the room watched Akira automatically stifle his laughter at the sound of Ann’s voice, his very presence leaning and bending around her every word. If she weren’t well acquainted with teen romance, she would have rolled her eyes. 

Instead, she only smiled her innocent smile, hopping off of the back of the couch. 

“Oh, sorry. You guys aren’t used to that, huh?” Akira said, smile turned from mirthful to sheepish in an instant. Ann grinned. 

“Not really, but I happen to think it’s cute.” 

Oh, they were  _ so _ dating. Rise smirked to herself, the twitch of her lips impish in nature. From the corner of her eyes, she saw Souji roll his eyes, sinking down into the couch where she’d once been perched. 

Though, now that she looked at the girl, she so vividly saw herself from high school reflected back in her eyes. That same urge to change the world, to make  _ something _ go right…..to help. 

….Damn. 

They even had the same pigtails, and if Rise focused on Kouzeon just enough, she could almost see the warm fire in the girl - though she didn’t need much assistance to see just how fierce and passionate she was. And those eyes….she’d seen them from somewhere before. But she just couldn’t put her finger on it. 

Huh. Well, she’d probably remember in a minute. 

“Aw, you get used to it.” She giggled, sliding in beside her young friend and giving him a hug. Her heels gave her the height advantage, but he’d definitely grown since being forced to Tokyo. Maybe she should visit Leblanc more often….

A pang of minor guilt welled up within her stomach. She should have come to see him sooner - make sure he didn’t get in any trouble. But the press would have a  _ field day _ with that one. Maybe, she reasoned, she could talk to Inoue and see if he would stop in, or make time for her to stop in? 

Eh, those were thoughts for later. 

“Rise…..” Akira huffed, attempting to pull away from her. The older woman was having none of that, however. 

“Aww, ‘Kira-kun....” She drawled, giggling. “Don’t you think I should get a hug? I haven’t seen my little teddy bear in so long.” 

Akira grumbled, though he was unable to suppress the smile that came up as the idol embraced him. “Go snuggle with Teddie, then.” 

“Don’t you get smart with me, young man.” She said, holding him at arm’s length and smiling brilliantly. Akira didn’t fail to notice the shocked and starstruck faces of his team, who, other than Ann, looked as if they might collapse. The blonde had been expecting this, but to see Rise Kujikawa in the flesh was ...mind-numbing. She had such a presence, and it only reinforced Ann’s resolve to become the best of the best. 

Akira flashed a smile back at her, and it became clear that she was one of the most externally forward people in the room, aside from him. The room lapsed into silence for a moment, as if it were being savored before what was coming next. 

The calm before the storm. 

“So,” the idol said abruptly, casting a look at the thieves. They stiffened, partly because Rise Kujikawa was looking at  _ them _ , and partly because she almost seemed to see through them. All at once, the light, lively atmosphere in the room seemed to dim. What had made it so light and friendly, no one was quite sure, but now it was time for business. “Mind introducing us to your friends? I’m getting a little impatient.” 

“Seconded!” The short-haired girl behind Yukiko chimed in, prompting the others to murmur in agreement. 

The thieves eyed them warily as if just now realizing that they were adults - categorized with some of the very same adults they were rebelling against. Akira looked over to them, only just now realizing the budding tension in the room. 

As much as he wanted to just let out a relaxed sigh and recline back into the embrace of his family, he had to go to them. He  _ had  _ to. 

He couldn’t just abandon them, not with the way Ryuji’s leg had begun to bounce, and the way Ann’s shoulders were already squared but looking to him for help. Not with the way Makoto trained her eyes on his head and held her hands in loose fists at her sides, and certainly not with the way Futaba had ducked her head, wondering for a moment, if, after all of this, they were still going to lose Akira in the end. 

No matter how much he loved the people who’d had a hand in raising him - who’d support him and his family no matter what, he couldn’t just leave them, and he wouldn’t. They’d gone through too much together for that. No….

Akira was far too attached for that. 

He removed Rise’s hands from his forearms, straightening his back and lifting his chin. The woman didn’t seem offended by the gesture, instead donning an expression of mild amusement. She didn’t do much else, simply retreated to the nearest couch, leaning against it and watching. 

“I guess we’ll go down the line, then. Right, Leader?” Ann said, smiling at him in that reassuring way of hers as he made his way over to them, standing in front of them. All at once, he went from the shy, sweet, and goofy Akira that they all knew to someone entirely different. 

Someone cocky. Smooth. Confident. 

Joker.

“Right. Underclassmen first.” He smirked, watching as the thieves fell into their normal positions behind him. Ann, Ryuji, and Futaba fanning out to his left, staggered behind him, and to his right, Makoto, Yusuke, and Haru. Morgana came out of the bag and sat on his shoulder, making sure to watch his six. 

Futaba groaned. “Seriously?! I haven’t grinded up enough for this….” she grumbled. Her eyes did lift, however, and she stepped up a little so that everyone could see her, cheeks pink. “My name is Futaba Sakura. I’m in my last year of middle school - but I go online because public school’s stupid.” 

The comment and information raised murmurs and smiles among the group of adults, but it was quickly waved away. “Okay. Ryuji?” 

The ex-track star’s leg bounced uneasily, but their resident beam of sunshine was quick to reassure him, turning around with a kind smile. He stepped forward reluctantly. 

“Lesee….Name’s Ryuji Sakamoto. I’m a second year, and that’s all ya really need to know, ain’t it?” His disposition was unfriendly, but not entirely unwarranted. He  _ was _ in a room of the people that the Phantom Thieves actively worked  _ against _ , after all. 

“That means I’m next!” If the adults in the room were looking to discuss Ryuji at all, they didn’t get the chance. Ann stepped forward, radiating charm and kindness. Though it wasn’t everyone else’s approach, this worked her way. If they were good people, then this started her relationship with them off on the right foot. 

And if they weren’t…..well, who’d expect much from a sweet, innocent girl like her? 

“The name is Ann Takamaki! I’m a classmate of Akira’s. And, um….I like crepes a lot! Oh, and modeling. I’m sure you’ll see me all over, someday! It’s nice to meet you.” The blonde was all smiles, but her attitude was reminiscent of Rise’s. Kind, but vicious if you got acquainted with her bad side. 

She was quick to fall back into line, sharing a glance with the group’s leader. Some sort of silent conversation was happening, that much was clear to everyone, but it was hard to understand the contents of said conversation. Praise, perhaps? 

They weren’t left with much time to dwell on it, because Yusuke was - somewhat reluctantly - following shortly after her. “Yusuke Kitagawa. I am a second year, attending Kosei High. My passions include art.” The description was accompanied by a steep, graceful bow, but he was gone just as quickly as he’d came. 

“I should think you know who Akira is,” Makoto said, tossing a look to her underclassman, “so I’ll be the next to introduce myself. I’m Makoto Niijima, a third-year at Shujin. I happen to be the student council president.” 

Her introduction was short and to the point. If anyone were to look closely, though, they’d notice Haru moving before her friend had even gotten back, seeming to tag her out with a subtle high-five. 

The heiress bowed deeply, soft features set in a serious, yet kind, expression. “My name is Haru Okumura. I’m a third year at Shujin as well, and if we’re sharing, I suppose my gardening will suffice!” The introduction was ended with a giggle and a smile, along with a short bow. 

A thick silence seemed to descend from the apartment as she resumed her position near Akira, who was the one to break the silence. “And that’s us.” 

“What about the little guy on your shoulder?” 

Akira looked to Souji, who seemed to only be seated because of the fact that the women around him would probably just drag him back to his seat. He smirked. 

“This is Morgana. I needed a little buddy to bring back with me to Inaba, and a  _ cat _ just seemed fitting.” His smirk turned to a simper as the cat began to yowl loudly at him. A few of his friends turned away with poorly concealed smiles that threatened to turn into giggles. “Want to hold him?” 

If it were possible for the leader of the Investigation Team to light up any more than he already had at the mention of Akira bringing Morgana back to Inaba, he did. “Can I?” 

Without another word, Akira took the cat from his shoulder and dropped him in Souji’s lap, who went to work. 

“Aww, he’s so cute!” Yukiko exclaimed, maneuvering her head in a way that made her dangling earrings sway. While the cat yowled at being set down, he seemed to accept Souji’s scratches behind the ears and chin, purring against his will. He seemed to stomp and pout as he made pumpkins on the fabric of Souji’s pants, causing the copper-haired youth standing behind the couch to frown down at him. 

“Is he….pouting?” 

“Doesn’t matter! Look at how cute he is~!” Rise cooed, having turned around to look. Kanji just stared in awe at the cat. “He’s so fluffy. C-Can I-?” 

“Ahem.” 

The short word cut off the brewing banter among the Investigation Team, who turned to look at the woman standing in the middle of the room. It was none other than Mitsuru, who didn’t even need to look at them to quiet the room. 

They stood in silence for a minute, and Akira rose his chin to look at the woman in front of him. The expression she dawned wasn’t anything he hadn’t seen before - he just hadn’t seen it on Mitsuru. The look of a challenger - of someone willing to play mental chess. 

The boy’s hand went up before she could say anything. “Alright, let’s just get this over with. Yes, we’re the Phantom Thieves. Yes, I lead them. Yes, you can throw me in jail if that’s what you want to do - I don’t care. Not like I have a future anyway.  _ But. _ ” He paused, then nodded. “No matter what you  _ think _ you can do, Mitsuru-senpai, you can’t stop me - can’t stop us. And you know that.” 

It was as if he’d taken the chess table and flipped it over. The phantom thieves seemed to be gobsmacked; it was as if Akira had taken out his model gun and pistol-whipped them all in the face. The adults simply shared looks. 

For Mitsuru’s part, she continued to give Akira a harsh, critical look, but he was not backing down. Brown met the silvery gray pools of his eyes, shining so brightly with determination to fix the mess that their predecessors had made. 

A soft smirk grew on the older girl’s face. 

“Now, who said I was looking to bring an end to the Phantom Thieves?” 

Akira’s knees nearly gave out from the pure relief that flooded his system, mouthing the words “Thank you” with a tired smile as the atmosphere lifted. Though the thieves were still untrusting, the more forward of the few began to speak up. 

“Now that you know stuff about us, we want to know stuff about you guys, too!” Ann smiled brightly. 

Minako, the short auburn-haired lady from earlier, smiled at them, walking to stand beside Mitsuru. A number of others also closed in around her, but not quite everyone. 

“Okay, what do you want to know?” The woman asked kindly. 

“We wanna know how you guys became persona users.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, at the last minute, I decided I was going to go ahead and make this a sort of collection. The first few chapters will just set up a baseline while tackling the end of the game, and I'll write more scenarios in this little AU corner I've made for myself as I go on. More ships will be added, too, but the only one that will really get it's own segments that aren't separate chapters is Akirann, and that's because I adore them.  
> I was also going to have them fully talk things out....but this chapter is 7000 words and I didn't want to drop a chapter that was 10k and then have nothing for the next. So I split it!  
> I hope you like this, and I can't wait to see what shenanigans I can pull these folks into.  
> As always, kudos, reviews, bookmarks, and any other way you can support the work is much appreciated! I'd love to know what you guys think!  
> I'll see you in the next one!


	3. Persona Users

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Phantom Thieves and the Investigation Team recount their stories. Nanako and Ken do some foreshadowing. Two members of SEES have an interesting interaction with the Phantom Thieves

Futaba’s blunt statement took the adults in the room aback, forcing everyone into a state that could only produce stunned silence. And then, suddenly, it wasn’t so quiet anymore, because the panic was trumping the silence and coming forth from them. 

“H-huh?!” 

“What-?!”    
  
“How do you-?” 

A sharp whistle cut through the air, which had surprisingly came from the female leader of SEES. Minako put her hands on her hips. “I’m sure they would tell us if you all settled down.”

“I would also like to hear how you reached this conclusion. Please, take a seat.” Mitsuru said, gesturing to the large couch that had just been brought in for the thieves. They settled down, as did the two older women, taking this time to glance at the room. 

It was large, but seemed way smaller with the people in it. The apartment was an open space, with a living room that bled into the kitchen and only a couple rooms that were shut off from their line of sight. 

While Souji’s team had definitely occupied a large couch, Minako’s team was more spread out. Most lingered by the kitchen, though a gray-haired man sat on a couch in the back that faced the kitchen, next to the young girl that they’d learned was Nanako. Her hands instinctively clenched into fists at the mention of Personas. 

The seating was arranged almost like a pentagon, where the top left was Souji’s team, the top right was the spare couch, the bottom right was the thieves, and the bottom was SEES. The left had been left open. 

“Well,” Futaba started, pushing up her glasses. “I did some digging. I found out that all of you belong to the ‘Shadow Operatives’, and that your story has some interesting similarities with our own. Like for example, Apathy Syndrome ending only a year after Minako and her brother transferred.” Some of the adults in the room winced, either because of Futaba’s lack of honorifics and blithe nature, or because of the mention of what had occurred years prior. “Or the murders ending after Souji transferred, and his  _ interesting _ group of friends, who also went missing for a period of time in that year. That’s all. So, I want to know.” 

“That’s…..rather impressive.” The red-haired woman in front of them said, seeming a bit surprised. “I wasn’t aware that our information was quite that accessible.” 

“It isn’t. It was a  _ pain _ to find.” Futaba shrugged. 

The grey haired man laughed from beside Nanako. “Y’know, I think I like her.” 

“Sanada-” 

“Enough.” Minako stopped the scolding before it began. “Go on?” 

“There’s not much more to say, I guess. Ann was the one who tipped me off, anyway.” 

“Really?” Rise piped up, glancing at the girl with some sort of respect. “How’d  _ you _ figure it out?” 

Ann shifted in her seat, but she still spoke. “Well, Ryuji kind of spilled the beans on the whole...alternate dimension thing when some of you came to visit Leblanc. So when they,’ she gestured to the few that had come to Leblanc, “said that it didn’t sound that outlandish, it wasn’t hard to figure out that their status and involvement with the circumstances around them had something to do with personas.” 

“I suppose that if you weren’t studying them closely or as an insider, you wouldn’t really find it all that strange in our cases.” Yukiko said next, causing the rest of the group to give an affirmative nod. 

“So? Are you going to tell us?” Futaba pressed, causing her leader to give a stern look from the corner of his eye. 

Souji considered them, as did Minako, before he finally spoke. “If you tell us how you gained your personas, then I don’t see the harm.” 

“Alright then. Is that okay with you guys?” Akira was quick to agree, but his eyes lingered on certain members of his team for a little longer. Reluctantly, all of them gave a short nod.

“Well, I guess it all starts with my transfer. After that asshole ruined things and I got sent to stay with Sojiro, I got this strange app on my phone. While I was making my way over….” Akira’s eyebrows furrowed, gravity settling in at the corners of his mouth. “....it sort of just... appeared on my phone. Time sort of stopped for a second, and one of my personas, Arsene, appeared in the middle of the crosswalk. It stopped, so I continued and deleted the app, but it reappeared on my phone later. I also went to some place called the Velvet Room….? It’s like a blue prison, and has two little guards? I guess you would call them attendants? And some guy named Igor. He’d apparently given me the app.”    
  
The council inside the room seemed to take this in and think for a minute.    
  
“Wait, you mean you have multiple personas, too?!” A man in a baseball cap shouted, throwing the pieces together a second late.    
  
Their leader nodded. “Yeah, and that place…. the Velvet Room. It’s more of a room - I guess it’s kind of like a prison now.” 

“You can access the Velvet Room?” Minako asked him, seeming somewhat alarmed. 

“Yeah.”    
  
“That’s….weird. Neither Souji or I have been able to access it since February….. And you say that he gave you the app?”     
  
The Wild Card of the Phantom Thieves only nodded. “Yeah, but it’s weird. He keeps calling me ‘Trickster.’”   
  
“Trickster, huh? Never pegged Igor to come up with that.” The silver-haired man commented. “Does he still have that same voice?” 

“The deep one?” 

“The deep one….?” Minako asked. “His voice is deep for you?”    
  
“Um….yeah?” Akira seemed scatterbrained, but his two senior Wild Cards only looked at each other with something like alarm.

The leader of the Phantom Thieves watched them carefully, suddenly very uneasy about the situation. 

“Akira,” Souji said slowly, “.....be careful around Igor.” He’d paused for a while, something that threw the junior off. He nodded and let out a shaky sigh. 

“....right…..well, uh….where was I? Oh, yeah. So Sojiro and I went to pick up my uniform, and then we went home, and then I went to school the next day. Or at least….I tried to.” He sighed. “It was raining, so I stopped under an awning, which is where I met Ann, actually,” said girl gave a sheepish blush and donned an equally sheepish expression, trying to sink back into the couch with some coos from her teammates and confused glances from the other persona users. “but she doesn’t come in until later. So, I met up with Ryuji, and then we arrived at the school, which had turned into what we call a Palace.” 

“A Palace?” Minako inquired, slightly tilting her head to the side. 

“It’s the source of someone’s distorted desires.” Makoto elaborated. “When someone’s cognition or desires warp them, they create a Palace. In order to steal their desires, we enter the Palace and send a calling card, which manifests their desires into something we can steal to force them to revert from twisted individuals to who they were before they were distorted. We access these places through an alternate world that we’ve named the Metaverse.” 

“Metaverse, huh? That must be like the Dark Hour.” Shinjiro commented. The adults in the room gave a simultaneous nod.    
  
“Or the TV world…. it sounds more like it.” The idol hummed thoughtfully. 

“Yeah. So, Kamoshida viewed the school as his “castle” and thought he was the king of the castle because of what he was getting away with.” Akira informed their audience. They would have all been fools if they had missed the way that his eyes darkened at the mention of the man, or if they’d missed how the teasing of Ann suddenly stopped, or said girl’s quiet shiver, or if they had missed Ryuji’s jaw clenching and the bounce of his leg. 

“We met Morgana inside after some guards took us to his dungeon, and, uh…. it was an adventure. Ann got involved after, and that slowly evolved into Madarame getting Yusuke involved, and then Kaneshiro involving Makoto, and Futaba getting involved, and then Haru getting involved with Okumura.” Akira’s fists clenched in his lap. “And then…. Akechi.” 

“But that rat bastard had already been in the metaverse for way longer.” Ryuji huffed. 

“Ryuji-” Makoto was quick to scold, but Akira rose his hand and silenced her. 

“It’s alright. I think we’re all a little mad about it.” 

It was then that a sort of quiet moment was shared between the team. The space between each of the individuals seemed to still and push outward, keeping them upright, but all were wound with the same tension. Akira had almost been killed. It had  _ almost _ happened. He wasn’t dead, but it wasn’t as if everything was normal. It wasn’t as if this wasn’t going to leave permanent damage. It would. The tension was the only thing that kept them up, kept them alert. If it weren’t for that threat still being there, they’d all have collapsed into one tangle of limbs by now. 

 Akira was different. 

He seemed to slump down, unbound by the tension. It was as if he would have been content to pull and tug at his own hair until everything just  _ stopped _ and he could sleep again, until the pain went away and everything was numb. He looked tired.

So, so tired. 

“So you said you had a plan to get him out. Wh-What was that plan?” Kanji asked from the back. It was an effort to move the conversation forward, but he was stumbling over his words a little in an effort not to get explicitly angry. Maybe it was a bad idea to invite them so soon, but it had been so  _ long _ . They had to make sure he was alive and this wasn’t a false positive. 

All at once, Futaba seemed to perk up. “Oh! I’ve been waiting for this!” 

The exclamation caused sudden and unforeseen snickers to arise from the group belonging to Minako, particularly from the woman herself and Shinjiro, who seemed to find it among the funniest things they’d ever heard. The man sitting next to Nanako grumbled something about how this “wasn’t even funny” and sunk lower into his seat. 

Nonetheless, Futaba continued. “So, when Akechi ‘found us out’,” Her air quotes were almost grossly exaggerated, “He wanted us to target Niijima Sae, which is-” 

“-my older sister.” Makoto finished, looking at the hem of her skirt and running her fingers over it nervously. “She’d long since changed and became someone she hadn’t meant to be.” 

“Right. So, we had to agree. It was kind of mission critical.” Futaba shrugged. “But, we knew he had plans. Plans like….I’ll just show you. It’ll be easier.” The young girl pulled out her phone and set it on the table, hitting play on a specific audio clip once more. The thieves braced themselves to hear it again, but everyone else weren’t quite so lucky. 

_ “We could say he stole the guard’s gun and committed suicide during his imprisonment….how about that?”  _

_ “......” _

_ “.....Yes, the guard will be one of ours. We’ll have to eliminate him after to destroy the evidence, though.”  _

A hush swept over all of the room, fury spreading from the adult’s heads to their toes. 

“They’re going to die a slow and painful death.” The manager of the Amagi Inn growled, gripping her skirt tightly. 

“As much as I would like to kill them….murder’s illegal.” One of the girls from SEES said, brown eyes looking down at her hands. Her expression was sour. “Damn it.” 

Sensing the anger, Akira sat up straight, smirking in that devious way of his. The sudden recovery was odd to some in the room, but was appreciated nonetheless. “No need to worry about Akechi….we got him.” 

The only female wild card raised her eyes from the floor to his, now, raising an eyebrow. Her stomach and her emotions seemed to both be tied in knots. “What does that mean?”   
  
“Well, when Shirogane-san and the others visited Leblanc, Futaba mentioned a plan, remember?” Ann said, giving a half smile that spoke of vengeful joy. 

“I do remember you saying something about that…” Fuuka said quietly, prompting Naoto to nod in agreement. “Are you going to tell us now?” 

“Bingo. It all begins in June….” Futaba started, looking to their leader, who was more than ready to tell the story. 

“Shujin wanted to go on a trip to a TV station for some reason or another, so of course we had to go. By that, I mean Ryuji, Ann, and myself. So, anyway, Akechi was there. He had some choice things to say on the Phantom Thieves, so we interacted, blah, blah, blah. But here’s where it gets interesting: we were talking, and Morgana,” he gestured to the cat, “spoke. Which you guys wouldn’t be able to hear because you haven’t accessed the metaverse. And Akechi claimed he wasn’t able to access the Metaverse at that point, so he shouldn’t have been able to hear it.” 

“But he did,” Ann continued, smiling at the miffed expressions on the other persona users’ faces. “And some of us caught his little mistake. So later, he said he wanted to ally with us for one mission and then get our word that we wouldn’t do more in exchange for  _ not _ selling us out -” 

“- which is blackmail, by the way. And ‘m pretty sure that’s a crime.” Ryuji chimed in, causing Ann to nod.

“Right. So obviously, we were pretty cautious of him. He’d been speaking out against us since forever and had finally figured us out, and then wanted to ally with us for just one mission instead of throwing us in jail like any self-respecting cop would’ve done.” The blonde shrugged. “So, we had stuff in place. Futaba had bugged his phone, and after he joined, we held secret meetings in Leblanc's attic.”

“Where Akira lived.” Ken realized. Ann nodded. 

“Boss knew that we were coming over, but not exactly who he was housing. At least...not at first. He was angry when Futaba had gotten involved, but once we explained things to him…”

The corners and crevices of Akira's half smile were tucked with fondness. “He came around.” 

“Anyway, I bugged his phone, and that let us figure him out. Now all we had to do was figure out how we were going to keep Akira from dying.” Futaba shrugged. 

“Isn't that illegal?” The man with the brown hair asked, still standing behind the wild card from Inaba. 

“Technically, everything we're doing here is illegal. The police are in pursuit of us.” Haru commented a bit dryly, crossing her ankles. “But sometimes the law needs to be broken for justice's sake….”

“Indeed.” Shirogane-san agreed, hand to her chin. “If you’ll indulge me, what happened next?”

“Welllll….we took a little field trip. See, we knew where Akechi was going to want Akira contained so he could go through with his gross little plan, so we went to check something out. Y’see, Palaces affect specific areas, not just buildings. So, what if the interrogation room was somehow within the Palace’s limitations? What if we used the cognition of Akira that Sae had, and that cognition, combined with Akechi’s own, died instead of him?” Futaba explained, pushing up her glasses.

“Is that….even possible?” Souji wondered, lips drawn into a frown. 

“You’re looking at living proof that it is.” Futaba said in reply, grin wolfish. “We set up the perfect trap.”    
  
“First, we confirmed that the interrogation room was within the Palace’s limitations. Which it was, obviously, so then it was just a matter of figuring out how we were going to get Akechi into the metaverse without him knowing.” Ann continued. 

“And we used a phone as a decoy, one that Futaba had planted a bug on. Once the signal was given, all she had to do was click a button and wait for Akechi to make his merry way home after the assassination. Akechi thought that he was carrying out his little plan, when in reality…..” Futaba trailed off, looking toward their leader, who picked the story up. 

“I was still safe and sound in the interrogation room, and waiting for Sae to come back once Futaba had finished. And then Sae, finally realizing who it was that she was working with, brought me back to Leblanc, and now…..here I am.” 

“That’s….” Minako seemed at a loss. “You  _ really _ knew that would work? I was under the assumption that someone would die if you killed their shadow self, or something along those lines.”

“Nope, it was a gamble. But it  _ did _ work.” Akira shrugged. “Cognitions and Palace Rulers are the same, but they’re also kinda different. For example, there were cognitions of certain people in Kamoshida’s palace, and when those got destroyed…. nothing happened to the actual person. The palace ruler just stopped seeing them that way.” 

“That’s….you could have  _ died _ , Akira!” Ken scolded him. 

A half smirk was given in response. “Well, at least it wasn’t via a  _ car _ this time.” 

Ken huffed and threw his hands in the air, casting a stern glare to the boy that screamed “this isn’t funny.” 

Akira faltered for a second, looking down at the floor. “Look, I know, it was risky, but it was that, going to jail and letting him get  _ away _ with everything and ruin everyone’s futures, or me dying. So….I didn’t have a choice.” 

“Yeah, but what if you….” A brunette-haired woman had started in on him from the kitchen. She trailed off, not willing to say anything. But the older persona users knew what she was referring to -  _ who _ she was referring to. They looked down at their hands. 

What if he had died just like Minato?

Akira sighed. “I know, I know. It wasn’t smart and for all you guys knew, I became a martyr for rebellion. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to worry you, I just…” 

“Couldn’t let anything happen to your team, huh?” Minako prompted softly, smiling at her young friend. “You’re just like he was….” the girl sighed and shook her head. “Come here.” 

Reluctantly, he stood and moved to the center of the room, where she still sat. In turn, the woman embraced him like a big sister would. He looped his arms around her, but neglected a true hug. “Aw, come on, I know you can hug better than that, kid!” She laughed, shaking him slightly. Akira smiled at her and gave her a true hug, this time, distantly noting the wetness behind her eyes. 

“You’re so stupid, sometimes….” The female wild card said, shaking her head. 

“Indeed. If you make me worry like that again, I believe I’ll have to come up with a suitable punishment, Akira.” Mitsuru chimed in, once again accompanied by a cup of tea. 

The room stood in somber silence for a minute, but before long, Minako was causing trouble again by pinching Akira’s cheeks. 

“Ghhg, Minako!” Akira whined. “Ken, save me!” 

The teenage member of SEES sighed, looking to their leader. “Minako-san, as much as Akira-kun loves you, we do need to share our respective stories.” 

Minako pouted, but he had a point, so she released Akira, who rubbed his cheeks, groaning as he walked to his seat. 

“So…” Ryuji started awkwardly, “That’s our story. Who’s up next?” 

“I guess we are, right Partner?” The copper haired man from earlier injected, looking to Souji. He nodded. “Well, the story begins in 2011…” 

Ryuji whistled lowly. “That’s like….a whole 5 years ago.” 

“Yep. My parents sent me to live in the small town of Yasoinaba, better known as Inaba now.” Souji started. From there, he slowly brought the setting to life. A quiet, foggy town, with a local economy that was dying, being ravaged by two murders within his first week there. 

“They were hanging? That’s so effed up…” Ryuji said, clearly disgusted. 

Souji gave him a half smile, not too dissimilar to Akira’s. “A little bit.” 

He continued to explain their situation, the fact that the woman who had died was close to the man behind him, who was named Yosuke. How he’d had to face his shadow self when he went to investigate. 

“But you didn’t have to face one, correct? Why is that?” Yusuke inquired. Souji looked down, sighing. “Well, you see, I’ve never had anything to hide. I mean, there was some divine intervention, sure, but….” Souji seemed pensive. “I’ve never hidden anything. My parents weren’t around much - still aren’t - and one of the few lessons they taught me was that I had to be comfortable with myself and my likes and dislikes. So I’ve never had any secrets, and if I had issues, I came to terms with them on my own time.”   
  
“That’s very respectable…” Makoto commented, looking down at her hands. The older man gave her a somber quirk of the lips as a show of appreciation, and then continued his story. 

They listened for a while, noted how the members of his team stared at them, unwavering, when it came to their respective parts of the story. And they stared back, eyes full of intrigue and, for some of them, a bit of concern. For one, a deep understanding of the characters involved and surprise.

“So, wait, let me get this straight. You,” he pointed to Souji, “were the leader, Rise was your navigation after Teddie, Yukiko was the healer and your fire user, Chie had icw and physical, and then Kanji and Yosuke were lightning and wind (respectively) plus physical?” He squinted. “That’s….a little too similar, minus Yukiko, Teddie, and Yosuke.” 

“History always has a way of repeating itself.” Yosuke shrugged. 

“Wow, Yosuke-senpai, I wasn’t expecting you to wax philosophical in the middle of our story like that.” The idol teased. Yosuke flushed. 

“It’s not like it was intentional!” 

“Well what if it was? Hm? Are you trying to impress a  _ girl _ now that we’re all together?” She continued, clearly having fun. And, if she lightened the mood while she was at it, no one really seemed to mind. Akira, for one, found the impromptu intermission nice for his brain. Out of habit, he bowed his head, gently massaging his temples. While he didn’t have a headache or anything, it was a nice mechanism that helped him destress. 

So much for knowing what his family had been through, huh? 

“Wow, who’dve thought?” Ryuji breathed in amazement. The leader of the phantom thieves turned his head to look at his friend, raising an eyebrow. 

“Thought what?” 

“Well, y’know, that  _ the _ Risette has a mischievous streak.”  

At that comment, Akira’s head lifted and his hand rose. “Uh, me? You can ask the other two around our age if you don’t believe me. She’s a terror.”

“You sure, Joker? Might just be you.” Futaba chimed in, shrugging. “She doesn’t seem  _ that _ bad.” 

“Really? Hey, Ken! Nanako!” 

As if they were waiting, the two turned to look at him, both with equal amounts of curiosity, though Ken’s was a bit more well hidden. He signaled for them to come over, too absorbed in proving his point now to care much about what was going on around them.

Nanako was the first of the two over, standing in front of them all with her hands clasped behind her back. It was something that made her almost intimidating, to everyone else, but to Akira, she was just Nanako. Her hairstyle hadn’t changed since coming to see Ann and the others, though Akira noted that she was not only wearing something other than her uniform (something unusual for her), but the lines of her figure weren’t traced by her clothes as they usually were - her clothing hadn’t been pressed and fixed like it always was. 

Perhaps her personality didn’t scream regality and sophistication, like Mitsuru’s or Haru’s did, but she looked the part. Akira frowned at her, and was only met with a smile and a shrug of the shoulders. To society, it would seem as if nothing phased the young girl, but more got to her than she’d have liked for her friends to know. His frown deepened, becoming tainted with more concern than anything else. He opened his mouth to ask, only to be stopped in his tracks. 

Ken let out a sigh, standing near them now. Akira jumped a little. “I swear that you have teleportation powers.” 

From beside him, Ann smiled. “No, you were just too absorbed in what you were thinking to notice.”

Four eyebrows rose in unison, the two owners looking at each other in unison as their childhood friend spoke again, nodding in agreement. “Hm, true, I guess. Anyway, not the point! I need to prove a point. Is Rise a terror?” 

A small, genuine smile came to Nanako’s face, but she turned her head, saying nothing for the moment. Ken’s face only flattened into a deadpan. “Yes. She’s awful when it comes to teasing, and especially when it comes to relationships.” 

“Almost as bad as Minako-senpai, don’t you think?” Nanako said at last, grinning. It was oddly reminiscent of Akira’s own grin, one that almost always meant trouble. A sigh came from the oldest of the three, who nodded solemnly. “Don’t remind me. Having her and Akira-kun in the same room at the same time is already bad enough, and combining the four of you is a nightmare.” 

The Phantom Thieves shared a collective look, minus their leader, who only laughed. “She’s not that bad.” 

“I wouldn’t put any money on it.” 

“Hey, that’s awfully rude, Ken!” The brunette exclaimed, a little bit of a pout coming to her face. “And I’m not the one you guys should be afraid of right now, anyway.” 

Ryuji rose an eyebrow at her. “What’s that supposed to mean?” 

“Well,” Nanako’s face read innocence, though her tone screamed anything but. “You’re becoming young adults, you know? And with that comes romance. Buuuuut…..” 

Akira froze. “Oh, shit.” 

“Wait, you lost me.” The blonde boy commented, frowning in confusion. “What does that mean?” 

“I’m just saying that Akira’s got a lot of people looking out for him. And I’m not the worst. So later, when she,” Nanako pointed to Ann, who stiffened just a little, “and Akira get questioned, we’re totally not going to be the least of your worries.” 

“But why would you question them?” 

“Tradition.” Ken responded simply. “It started with Minako-san and Akihiko-san when they started dating in high school, but it slowly became some sort of weird tradition. And, well, Akira’s the baby of the group.” 

“Am not!” The leader argued childishly, surprising some of his team. Usually, Akira was mischievous but he was always put together and reasonable - never childish. 

“Are too.” Ken deadpanned, lips pressed into a line and arms crossed. “You’re always going to be.” 

“Nanako’s younger than me!” 

“And I’m also the baby of the group.” Nanako smiled. 

“Yeah, true…” Akira hummed. “It’s going to be hell for the guy that ends up dating you, huh?” 

Nanako smoothed out her skirt a little, winking conspiratorially at the thieves. “Well, that’s only if they find out I’m dating someone.” 

“Perhaps Dojima-san should become a Phantom Thief.” Yusuke mused, amused by the conversation. “She certainly has all the mannerisms of one.” 

“Don’t we have too many girls already, Yusuke-kun?” Haru chimed in, glancing at him. Futaba nodded her agreement. 

“I suppose…” Yusuke seemed to mull it over, attracting the attention of the girl herself. 

“Aw, that’s sweet, but even if I wanted to, I couldn’t.”    
  
“Why?” The only blonde female asked, glancing up at her. She sighed. 

“Well...my dad’s a detective, but I also don’t have one of those things you guys were talking about. A...um...persona, right?” 

“You don’t?! How do you know about all of this stuff, then?” Ryuji asked, now intrigued. 

“Well, I grew up with the group from Inaba, but there’s also a little more to it. I’m sure you’ll hear about it soon.” Nanako said, voice soft and docile. Ken turned his head to the side to hide his expression, remembering what had happened after their talk at Leblanc. 

“I’m assuming there’s more I don’t know, huh?” Akira asked, looking between them. His hair was all over his face, and habitually, Nanako reached over to fix it. The gesture was more cautious and platonic than anything, almost like a younger sister helping her big brother. 

“Don’t worry, neither of us knew until a week ago.” She assured, smiling at them. 

“What’s up with you kids over here?” A new voice asked, capturing the thieves’ attention. 

Ken sighed, face blank. “And there’s my cue to leave.” 

The man only grinned, slinging his arm around Ken’s shoulders and pulling him back in before he could get too far. A sigh came from Ken, but he said nothing more. Nanako picked up the slack instead, smiling at the older man (and, though she wouldn’t admit it, watching Ken get harassed by SEES was always a good time.) “Oh, Junpei-san! We were just talking about Rise-senpai.” 

“Oh, you mean Risette? She’s a knockout, ain’t she? Of course, I’ve only got eyes for my lovely Chidorita~!” 

Ann glanced at him from head to toe, mentally scratching her head a little. Junpei Iori was older, maybe in his early 20’s or so, but if the onlooker had seen pictures from his high school days (which, she had, and Akira was more than happy to provide), he hadn’t changed too much. He wore his hat backwards, but he still had a slight beard. His hair had grown out somewhat, too, though now he had a different style. It seemed as if he’d pulled on the nearest thing to him, which was a red button-up jersey with a team’s logo on the back and some jeans, and then a pair of sneakers. A gold band glittered on his ring finger, a sure sign that he’d tied the knot with whoever this “Chidorita” woman was. 

“Pardon the question, but who is ‘Chidorita?’” Makoto asked. 

“His wife. Chidori-san is actually very nice and extremely talented as an artist.” Ken commented dryly. “Will you let me go?” 

“Just a moment,” Yusuke cut in, staring at Junpei and his young friend. “You aren’t speaking of Chidori Yoshino, are you?” 

“It’s Chidori Iori now, but yes. Isn’t she great?” 

“She’s truly an exquisite artist. I wonder what it would be like to paint her someday.” Yusuke sighed wistfully. 

“H-Hey, she’s  _ my _ wife! You aren’t trying to steal her, are you?!” Junpei shot back. 

“Of course not. I can’t imagine why she settled with someone as…” Yusuke searched for the right word, but his tone still felt disapproving. “..aesthetically unpleasing as yourself, but I suppose it is not my business.” 

Akira turned his head to laugh at the man’s misfortune at encountering his blithe friend, who was currently oblivious to the chaos brewing. 

The man seemed absolutely hysterical at that. “What’s that supposed to mean, you punk?! I’ll have you know that my Chidorita and I were made for each other, and -” 

“Will you ever stop being so defensive?” A new voice cut in, stern but fond. “Jeez…” 

“Yuka-tan!” The grown man whined, now clutching onto his female companion instead of Ken, “how could you say that? Another boy is trying to steal Chidorita from me!” 

Yukari Takeba was just as beautiful in person as she was on TV. Her hair had been left remarkably untouched since her high school days, other than the longer, more mature length it took on. It was still styled the exact same, too. And, while she always appeared on TV in dresses or in costume, she seemed to be rather casual in her off time, only having a blouse tucked into some high-waisted jeans and a pair of sunglasses on her head. 

Yukari ducked out of his hold, sighing. “I’m sure you’re just overreacting again. Why are you bothering them in the first place?” 

“They were talking about Risette, so naturally I had to come see what was happening!” 

The brunette rose an eyebrow. “What were you debating about Kujikawa?” 

“We were just complaining about what a terror she is.” Ken mentioned offhandedly, ignoring the panicked looks on Nanako and Akira’s faces. 

“Pff, yeah, she is a terror. Hey, Kujikawa!” Yukari’s voice rose as she called for her, causing the woman to cease her bickering with Yosuke and report to her fellow celebrity’s side. 

“Yeeees, my sweet?” Rise asked, popping up next to her friend in a matter of seconds. Yukari rolled her eyes. “You make it sound like we’re a couple.” 

Rise blew her a kiss. “The western audience would love it if we were~!”

“You’re so weird. Anyway, I just thought I’d let you know that the Terror Trio are calling  _ you _ a terror.” The statement was innocent enough, but it was sure to get them in trouble, if Rise’s expression had anything to say about it. 

“How rude!” She pouted. “I’m not a terror, I just happen to have a lot of fun teasing you kids!” 

“Rise-san, you’re only older than us by….what, 4 years? Maximum?” Ken pointed out, tone still deadpan. 

“Mmmhmmmhmmm, but, you see, you’re still those little kids I met all those years ago to me~!” The idol sang, having far too much fun. 

“You should probably get back to Souji, though,” Akira hummed. “I’m sure he misses you.” 

“Oh, please, he’s fine. But I guess I should let him continue, huh?” 

“Oh, yeah. We really did go off topic. Better sit down before we get frosted over by the ice queen herself.” Nanako mused. “It was a good talk, though! I’ll probably be back before the night’s over.” 

With that, the girl headed back to her seat, prompting the others to do the same. 

The leader of the Investigation Team watched as they all sat down again, ready to continue.    


“Well, now that intermission is over, are you all ready to keep listening?” 

Sheepishly, the teens in the room nodded and began to listen again.

They listened through the story - through the rest of November and December and the months beyond. They listened to the final person that got thrown into the TV, listened to it from Souji’s side. They experienced the utter panic that the group of then teens had felt for the young girl, the fight to get her back. Unsurprisingly, they didn’t share many details about what the thieves could only describe as a Palace, something that made their hearts heavy. What could an elementary schooler have had so rooted in her psyche that she formed something like a Palace? 

Souji’s eyes trained on the teen as he continued to tell the story, watching her carefully. This was clearly sensitive. He paused for a moment as he watched her, seeming to come to some sort of decision. “Nanako, you know you can say something if you want. Or if you don’t want to, we’ll gloss over it.” 

The brunette looked around, small shivers taking over her frame. Beside her, the grey-haired man she was sitting with placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. She inhaled through her nose. “Uh, well, I’m going to be honest here, I thought these events were just some bad nightmare I had until, like, a week ago. So, I got kidnapped and died for a couple minutes and yeah. That’s that, and I’ll probably need therapy, but that’s how it goes sometimes.” 

The statement was rushed and casual, but it was clear the situation wasn’t. Some part of Akira wondered why no one had told her, blamed adults for his frustration, but then calmed down as Ann touched his arm, clarity sweeping through him just as soon as the anger had come into his mind. 

“You really do spend too much time around Akira, huh, kid?” Shinji commented, half smiling. Both of their heads snapped in his direction. It wasn’t what anyone would commonly think to say as a response, but it served to lighten the mood and give them something easy to respond to. 

“Hey, I’m not that bad!” 

“She’s totally worse than I am!” 

Nanako turned back to Akira, scoffing. They were play fighting, something that anyone could have determined just by watching them. “Um, excuse you,  _ sir _ , I was a perfectly good, sweet,  _ mature _ young woman before you came around.” 

“And? Doesn’t affect anything now.”

“Ken, tell him I’m right! I can’t get any worse than the original!” 

“No, Ken, I’m right! She’s totally worse than me.” 

Ken sighed, rubbing at his forehead. “You’re both terrors, but if you don’t stop bickering, Seta-san is never going to finish recounting his teams’ journey.” 

Nanako and Akira pouted, something that made Souji chuckle at them. “Thanks, Ken.” 

“Just keep going, please.” 

Souji nodded and continued to paint the climax to their little story, from a murderous detective, to defeating gods, and finally ending with his transfer back home. 

“So wait, you defeated Izanami? Is she not a goddess?” Haru asked, confused. 

Souji’s face blanked. “You’d be surprised at how common it is.” The older man said, tone a bit sour. 

“Guess we’re the odd ones out, huh?” Akira mused, sighing. “Well….that took some twists.” 

“Mhm. Minako, I believe you’ve got a tale to tell as well.” Souji said, seeming somewhat eager to pass the torch. 

Minako sighed heavily, and it was then that the thieves noted her team’s matching looks of...grief. It was old, and faded, but grief all of the same.   
  
“We don’t have to -” 

“No, you need to know what happened.” The female wildcard said, pausing for a moment before she was ready to continue. 

“It all starts in the spring of 2009….” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Woohoo! It's me! Revisiting this prompt again!  
> Honestly, I love writing this fic but the number of characters, as well as how sloppily put together chapter 1 was really turned me off from writing it for a while. As I post this, I have to be up for a meeting tomorrow morning, but that's okay, because I'm happy to say that chapters 1 and 2 have been edited, and this chapter is now finished! Woohoo!   
> I loved writing all of the interactions in this chapter, and setting up Ken, Nanako, and Akira's dynamic was fun (there's going to be more of that later, perhaps with a familiar face involved.) Also, regarding the age gaps, I'm just going to say Nanako was around 10 at the time of p4, not 7 like she is in canon!   
> Anyway, thank you guys for reading! Any comments, kudos, bookmarks, or anything of the sort you could leave to show support helps a lot and lets me know I'm doing this whole writing thing right! (Comments help most of all!) I'll see you in the next chapter (that hopefully won't take months!)


	4. Spring of Life

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> SEES recount their story to the thieves. The night draws to a close. An event is planned for a later day.

While Souji’s team had spoken clearly and confidently, as if challenging them, Minako’s team were all somber. They spoke quietly and calmly, but not with a hint of confidence or joy. 

Minako, in particular, seemed to be peaceful, but she spoke with a grace that existed only to hide grief. “.....well, the story _actually_ starts in 1992. March 20th, 1992, to be exact.” She took a deep breath in. “I was one of two twins born on that day. There was me…..and then, Minato. My brother.” She looked down. “He was older by 5 minutes. It suited him, too - he was always stoic and had more of a head on his shoulders, but he was always more strict than I was. I was the one who encouraged him to have fun and play in the sun, and he never quite understood people like me. Well, other than me, but he had no choice but to spend time with me and understand me. And I was….the opposite. I’ve always been a free-spirit, and Mama and Papa used to say that I was full of sunshine.” A small, sad smile came to her face.  

“Our parents loved us both to death - twins ran in Papa’s side of the bloodline, so when he had us he was tickled pink. We were on our way to Tatsumi Port Island for a vacation - we were both seven, so I guess it had to have been 1999. I was sleeping, so I don’t remember what happened before I woke up, but Minato told me one night.” Her voice caught, but she cleared it again. “He said that they had turned to shadow and had lost control of the car. We crashed and I woke up - the car was on fire and Minato was dragging me out. Mama - her shadow - was clutching at the seatbelt and twisting back to make sure we were there. I remember screaming for her, but -” her voice gave out and she shut her eyes mournfully. “There was nothing I could do. They were both gone. Minato wasn’t, but he had glass in his side and burns all over - I - I’d gotten away with only burns, but he collapsed after dragging me away. I remember that I was wearing this little red dress and he was in blue, but he was being stained red. I didn’t know what to do, so I screamed for help. And then I fell asleep again.” 

She looked as if she were there again, but clearly refused to go back. In this spirit, she crossed the room to sit near Nanako and the grey-haired man, who gently put an arm around her and rubbed the small of her back. It seemed to relieve some sort of pressure, relaxing her enough to continue. 

“We bounced around in foster care for a while, which finally, _finally_ , brings us to the spring of 2009. The two of us received a scholarship to Gekkoukan Academy, located on Tatsumi Port Island….” 

She continued on, explaining their first encounters with Yukari and Mitsuru, giving each of them a weak smile. Yukari’s eyes were shut, but it wasn’t clear if it was in memory or pain. Mitsuru’s teacup quivered as she lifted it to her lips. Even after all this time, talking about it still hurt. 

“He noticed that Yuka-chan had a gun on her and asked why, and when I had smacked him on the shoulder she just gave us a frown.” Minako recounted, rolling her eyes with a small quirk of her lip. “I lectured him for a good minute or two over that - I mean, what if it had been for self-defense?” 

“It….wasn’t…?” Makoto asked, furrowing her eyebrows. 

Minako shook her head. The woman was, in a word, stunning. Her brown hair had been kept back in a low ponytail, but still spilled down her back. It wasn’t nearly as long as Ann’s or Futaba’s, but had grown a couple of centimeters. Red eyes accented the undertones in her hair, as well as a fair complexion. Today, she’d worn a red blouse that she tucked into a black, high-waisted skirt, and a black pair of Mary-Janes. 

Makoto had to look away. “ _Just like Mom….”_

“No. You see…” She went on, explaining more about her time there. “And then, one night when we had gotten there early, Yuka-chan woke us both up. She said to get to the roof. Of course, neither of us knew why, but we did it anyway. When we got there, there were these black blobs that transformed into different things - we didn’t know what exactly they were doing, but it was clear that they were the enemy.” As she explained, she rose and walked to the center of the room, standing in front of the thieves as if daring them to stop her. Stop her from what, only time would tell. 

“They were shadows, right?” Ryuji asked, raising an eyebrow. He was eyeing her, perhaps with some degree of wariness, even though she’d proven herself to be an adversary. 

She nodded. “Ours, evidently, looked different. While yours take on the form of Akira’s personae, ours just took on whatever form they felt like. So then, Yuka-chan took the gun she was holding…” Minako, from under her skirt, unstealthed a gun. It was silver, emblazoned with S.E.E.S on the side. Everyone stiffened. “And she held it to her head,” Like before, she replicated the action, “and then she stopped.” 

The thieves were all paying attention to her - even Makoto, who couldn’t look at her a second ago, was watching. “I screamed, shouted, tried to talk her out of it. Because like you, I didn’t know what was happening. And then, as the Shadows advanced, she picked it up again. But she couldn’t do it.” Minako sighed. “So, then, my brother, not wanting to go out to a group of shadows, picked it up. And he pressed it to his head, like so,” Instead of pressing the gun to her forehead, she placed it at the side of her head. “And then, he pulled the trigger.” 

The thieves took in a sharp breath. “You aren’t going to do the same, are you?” She asked. Minako smiled at her, and something in that smile shook the blonde down to her core. Perhaps it was acceptance, perhaps it was something more. Either way, she was a second away from doing _something_. “I am.” 

At once, Ann was on her feet, but Akira grabbed her wrist on instinct, studying Minako.  “She isn’t suicidal, Ann. Watch.” 

Reluctantly, she sat down, firey words on the tip of her tongue. 

Minako pulled the trigger. 

A sound that sounded something akin to shattering glass, mixed with the eerie echo of a gunshot filled the room, stealing the breath from the thieves’s lungs. A shimmering, translucent figure appeared within the room. It was a woman, though she had no face, and her robes were green and earthy in contrast with her celestial body, left open to keep herself on display. She had no detail other than the stars that made her three dimensional, but had the figure of the ideal maternal woman, up to the long hair she had been endowed with. “This….is Gaia.” 

“Your persona??” 

“Wait, I thought personae weren’t able to be summoned in the real world!”   
  
“Did you just _shoot_ yourself?” 

Minako held up a hand, eyes still on the woman in the middle of the room. The celestial being seemed to laugh at them, and it was only now that they noted her robes were actually made of earth, grass and dirt and all. “This is Gaia. My persona. I used to have Orpheus as my persona,” the familiar name caused the thieves to glance to Akira, who pressed his lips together. “But he evolved into Gaia, as you can see. Minato had the same persona I did, only their colorings were different. At least, our first personae.” 

“But how can you summon her in the real world?” Futaba asked, eyes fixed on the woman-like persona. She squinted. Was it her imagination, or did the persona have a small stomach bump? 

“Though it’s much more taxing to summon personae in the real world, it isn’t impossible.” The statement came from Shirogane herself, surprising everyone. “It’s simply a matter of training. Sometimes they’re needed in the real world.” 

“Exactly.” Minako nodded. “I’m sure you’ll be taught sooner or later. For now, let’s continue.” 

The woman walked around the persona in a small, lazy circle, though the being made up a large part of the center of the room and touched the floor and ceiling. The gun twirled in her hand, spun around her fingers and back, reminding them oddly of how Joker played with his own gun in the Metaverse. She described the beginning of their story, about the both of them having “the potential”, about the already-partly formed group dubbed the Specialized Extracurricular Execution Squad (SEES, for short), and about Fuuka. She continued to ramble about Strega, and finally stopped to take a breath when she neared the point that required her to tell them how the Dark Hour had even come about. 

“So these Strega guys….they’re like our equivalent of Akechi?” Ryuji asked, scratching his head. 

“Yeah, but it’s more complicated near the end.” Minako said, frowning. “I think most of them are dead now, though.” 

“ _Most_ of them are _dead?_ ” Ryuji gaped. “You didn’t kill them or nothin, right?” 

“Well,” Minako pursed her lips. “I think. The last time I saw them was right before the Dark Hour was destroyed, and I can’t say that I’m concerned for where they are now. Well, except one, but she’s always around and she turned everything around, so I can’t be mad at her.” 

“You let one of them join you guys?!” The blonde said, already doubting this person who he’d probably already met. 

“Hey, Chidorita’s not evil-!” 

“ _Chidori Yoshino_ was apart of this group?!” Yusuke exclaimed, cutting him off. 

“I - er -” 

Minako glanced at him and then back to Junpei, who was asking her to help in the most non-verbal way possible. She shrugged. “Your mess, you deal with it.” 

His face dropped, even as Yukari snickered. “So much for relying on ‘Mina-tan’, huh?” 

Junpei scowled at the actress in return, opening his mouth to explain. “It’s a long story, so why not let Mina-tan get to it, and I’ll answer the questions you have afterward.” 

The room went silent for a minute. 

“Huh. That’s the first intelligent thing I’ve heard you say,” Shinjiro quipped. 

“...Pff..!” 

Chie sighed. “Aw, Yukiko….now?” 

“I’m sorr- sor - sorreeehhhhhahahaha!” She began to giggle madly, making Chie roll her eyes. “You’re a mess.” 

The room, which had been previously drowning in tension, now dissolved into laughter at Junpei’s expense. He flushed, but he was laughing along too, if not just to laugh along. 

Eventually, though, it was time to settle down, and settle down they did. 

Minako sighed. “Junpei, what are we going to do with you?” 

“Uhh, I dunno. Keep me around and feed me table scraps, maybe?” 

The red-eyed woman shook her head, a fond smile on her face. “You’re too much sometimes.” 

Shaking her head once more, she glanced carefully to Mitsuru, who’s teacup was still slightly shaking. “Mitsu-senpai, would you like to explain how the dark hour came about, or do you want me to?” 

“I’ll do it.” The woman stood, finally, and it was then that they had the time to really admire the imposing figure that was Mitsuru Kirijo. She stood tall - she was already 5’6, but the heels she had on boosted that to about 5’9. Her hair was the same dark red it had always been, but now it curled and bounced at the end - as if she was taking even better care of herself than usual. She had on a black shirt that was tucked into an equally black pair of pants, with a black belt holding the pants up. A black blazer accompanied the look, fitting tightly around her while also remaining comfortable. Her heels were just as black, with a thin heel that made Mitsuru look _dangerous._ And, is if to top it off, her hair was all swung over her right shoulder, covering that side of her face while accentuating the other. She began to pace in front of them as she talked, voice tight.

“This is the story that was handed to me, and will be handed to you. The Kirijo group, and my extension my father and his own father, had been amassing shadows for quite some time. They were contained, controlled, and experimented on in order to learn to harness their energy - or at least, they _thought_ that they had contained them. One night in 1999, the Shadows broke free and assembled 12 larger shadows, each one representative of one of the major arcana, or so we believed.” She took a breath in and glanced at them before turning back to walk to her seat. “But the rest is for later.” 

Minako continued, going on and on. By the middle of September, they had assembled their team - Minako, Minato,  Akihiko, Mitsuru, Junpei, Yukari, Ken, Shinjiro, Fuuka, Koromaru, and Aigis.

“Wait, you’re telling me you had a _dog_ that had a Persona?!” Futaba squeaked, mouth falling open.

Minako nodded, dull amusement dancing around in her expression. “Koromaru is a good pup. He’s been with us...well, since everything happened. “But I’d assume you would ask about the robot before anything.” 

“Well, that’s weird too, but a _dog_ is just kind of….weirder.” Futaba said. “I - I still want to know about the robot, though. Does she run on programs? Gasoline? Does she have a built in soda despenser? Cause I’ve played this one game where they’re on and island and killing each other and -” 

“Earth to Futaba,” Akira interrupted, causing the redhead to smile nervously. 

“Oh, sorry, sorry, I just got carried away….ehehe….” 

Minako gave her a bright smile that somehow reached her eyes, though Akira couldn’t fathom how. “She doesn’t produce soda, but I’m sure Fuu-chan and her technicians would love your input. I don’t think it should be any trouble to put you in contact with them later.” 

Futaba’s eyes flickered to Mitsuru and then back to Minako, then to Fuuka and back again. Surprisingly, it was Fuuka who spoke up. “I’d be more than happy to have a second pair of eyes when going over Aigis’s functionality and programming, Futaba-chan.” She smiled. 

For once, a bashful expression overtook Futaba’s face and she blushed, nodding to the teal-haired girl. 

Minako continued, painting the landscape with her words as it turned from a bright summer to a darker, deeper fall. “This is where we come to October…..Shinjiro, Ken-kun, do you want to…?” 

“Up to the kid.” Shinjiro said gruffly, though anyone with two eyes could see the worry painted on his eyes, tucked in the creases in his forehead and around his mouth. 

Ken sighed. “Nanako told her story, so I might as well tell mine.” He took a deep breath in through his nose, unable to look at them. “Two years before I joined SEES, my mother was the victim of an attack, or so I thought. It wasn’t an attack, to be clear,  but my misunderstanding was something we almost paid dearly for. Shinjiro-san….he lost control of his Persona on the night of the supposed ‘attack’ and it caused my mother’s death - it wasn’t an attack. But I was 9, when she died.” He said quietly. His voice was thick and heavy and started to give out at the edges, as if Ken couldn’t bear it’s weight anymore, silently begging for another shoulder on which to lie the burden. “My dad’s been gone for...well, I never knew him - but my Mom was….Mom. I’m sure you get it.” 

His gaze became unfocused and he scuffed his shoe against the floor, frowning to himself and looking down. Minako shut her eyes. She wanted to hug him so _badly_ , but her legs just wouldn’t move. It hurt seeing Ken like this - he should have been full of life at nine. Going to soccer and playing with his friends. Not helping them fight. Shinjiro looked as if he were thinking something along the same line, hiding his face from everyone that wasn’t Fuuka. 

“Mom died on October 4th. So on that same day, after I joined SEES to find Shinjiro-san, I tried to kill him.” Ken’s hands were shaking a little, but as Nanako stood and settled herself beside him, they calmed back down. “I couldn’t do it, but Takaya - Takaya could kill him just fine. He shot Shinjiro-san, and then-” Ken’s voice, even with Nanako’s support, broke. “He asked where our navigator was, so he could kill that one, too. I jumped at the opportunity to do something, and then he raised his gun to shoot me, and -” 

“And I jumped in front of him. Almost died, too.” Shinjiro’s comment was offhand, as if he wasn’t emotional at all or couldn’t feel the emotions radiating off of Ken. 

"Luckily," he inclined his head in the direction of the female wildcard, "She had given me something, hell, I don't even remember what it was. A watch, maybe. It deflected the bullet. Only reason I'm still alive." He spoke in short, clipped sentences, as if he was angry. "Everything that happened….  was because of me." 

"You know that's not true." Ken said firmly, eyes still on the floor. "It was a series of mistakes.”

"Yeah, well…I started it.” 

“Shinjiro-san.” 

He sighed, shoulders falling. “Point is, I didn’t die. Barely. I should have, considering other activities that weren’t the bullet, but….” his lips tightened at the corners. “I guess it pays to be friends with someone who has scientists on hand.” 

The room dropped into silence. What were they supposed to say to that? What _could_ they say to that? The leader of the Phantom Thieves looked down at his lap, attempting to process this. He’d truly thought, that after going back, maybe Ken and Nanako wouldn’t recognize him or understand what he’d been through. 

They understood almost too well. His fingers twitched, and it was only then that he noticed that Ann had a tight grip on his hand. The blonde’s face was set in reverent concentration, but when he lifted the blanket a little, he saw what she was really thinking. She, like Ken, was shaking, as if she could feel what they felt. The only difference between her and him was the fact that tears had journeyed down his cheeks. Ann’s face was clear, unburdened with tear tracks only because of her jaw being set. 

The bespeckled boy rubbed his thumb over the back of her hand in small circles. In response, she squeezed his hand, but didn’t look at him. He suspected that if she did, she would have started to weep for these adults - adults not so unlike her a few years ago. Adults that - like them - had seen too much. Had fought far too much. 

It was then that Minako cleared her throat, smoothing her skirt over her lap. It was only when she drew attention back to herself that they realized she’d sat down. Gaia still stood in the middle of the room as if she were a pillar, watching each of them with mild interest. “We might as well continue. Shinjiro being out was….hard. Really hard. I was sure that he was dead until the paramedics got there.” She swallowed thickly. “But I think it gave us all something to think about. A month later, down one member, we went to fight the final shadow. We were thinking that finally, _finally_ , everything would be over and we could be normal students again.” 

Something about the past tense she used created a feeling of foreboding, one that concentrated and then spread, as if it were one of Makoto’s nuclear attacks. “So we fought it. Everyone was so happy. Especially Minato.” The words were fond, yet laced with a faded grief. “We decided to celebrate the next night. Mitsu-senpai ordered us a lot of sushi, and we waited for her father to show up with our mentor, Ikutsuki. Aigis was missing as well. Well, Mr. Kirijo showed up, but after waiting for the other two, we determined that they were out on an important errand.” 

Minako then let out a shaky breath. “Well….we partied late into the night. So late in the night, in fact, that we stumbled upon the Dark Hour once more. We hadn’t done what we set out to do, even though we’d done everything we were told. A bell started to toll - but from where we couldn’t tell. So, Mitsu-senpai told us to prepare for battle. We didn’t know what was going to become of us, but we did know that Ikutsuki was missing, and so was Aigis.” Minako’s voice was low and almost quiet, having lost that calm tone as soon as she began to talk about this event. Mitsuru’s teacup was left in her lap, and her chin was lowered. Everything about her posture sent mixed signals - which was something that threw Akira for a loop. 

“We ran to Tartarus. They met us at the front, but Aigis looked hollow. I remember that I met Minato’s eye, but I couldn’t read him. We asked him what was going on, and then…. then Mitsuru-senpai asked ‘What is your intention?’ and it clicked.” 

“He double-crossed you, didn’t he?” Makoto asked, tone bitter. 

Minako nodded, swallowing thickly. “He told us why we were really doing what we did. We had to defeat all thirteen shadows to reform Nyx, who would then bring about the Fall. And he told us…. well…. Mitsuru?” The use of her given name with no honorific was something Akira almost never heard, and as such, it jolted him, and seemed to immediately silence questions from the peanut gallery. 

“My grandfather amassed shadows not to observe them, but to bring about the Fall as well. Ten years prior, Nyx was released prematurely in an accident at the laboratory, which created the Dark Hour and, by extension, Tartarus. Aigis had tried to fight it, but could not fully defeat it. Instead, she spread pieces of Nyx everywhere.”  

“You mean…. your grandfather gave this Nyx being life?” Haru gasped, lifting her hand to her mouth. 

“Yes.” Mitsuru said, bowing her head even further. She seemed ashamed. 

“Hey, uh, you know, what your grandpa did doesn’t make you a bad person. Y’know? You’re…. kinda like us.” Ryuji spoke, shrugging. He looked anywhere but Mitsuru, as if he were nervous, but he felt as if he had to say _something._ “I know it ain’t that simple, but sometimes it pays to be simple-minded.” 

It was then that the adults’ eyes swiveled to him, some respect evident on their faces. The thieves looked at him too, surprised that he was the one to speak up. He scratched the back of his head. “I’ll shut up.” 

“....No. You’re right, Sakamoto.” It was then that Mitsuru lifted her chin, and also then that they noticed her eyes were glassy. “Thank you.” 

He rubbed the back of his neck. “Uh, no prob….” 

“Anyway…” Minako took a deep breath before delving back into it. “We were overpowered - Aigis was created to suppress Shadows, so we didn’t stand much of a chance. When everyone came to, we were on the roof of Tartarus, strapped to crosses. Evidently, Mr. Kirijo had followed us, and Ikutuski pulled a gun out. Only a second passed, but he pulled out a gun and fired, too. Itsuki got hit on the side, but Mr. Kirijo….” 

“He was cold before he dropped to the floor.” Her redheaded friend supplied, tone grim.

“Ikutuski ordered Aigis to fire...but I guess the sight of Minato made her snap out of it. She only freed us, instead, and when he tried to force her via remote control, Koro-chan jumped up and snatched the remote right out of his hand. And then, he talked some more, and he….he fell.” 

“Wait, he’s dead?” Futaba asked, leaning forward. 

Minako nodded. “I guess he realized that it was his best way out. Falling off, I mean.” 

“Serves him right.” Yukari scoffed. She seemed as if she wanted to say more, but just bit her tongue. 

Minako was leaning on her grey-haired companion heavily now, as if just talking about it was wearing her down. 

“Five days later, a boy named Ryoji transferred into our school. He seemed friendly enough, but Aigis didn’t like him. Then, maybe two weeks later, Fuu-chan sensed someone outside of Tartarus. That someone was Chidori. We ran to her. She was hostile, and after we’d finally managed to calm her down….Jin came around. He claimed she was being poisoned by us, and took a shot at Junpei.” 

“It should have killed me.” Junpei said, all traces of his light, jokester personality gone. “It hit right here.” The man tapped his chest, near his heart. It was in the zone to be fatal, but somewhere where he had a slight chance of living. “But she healed me…..and almost died in the process.” 

“Almost?” 

“Well,” his eyes flickered to Minako, and then to Yukari. “We’ve got some very stubborn women on our team.”  

“What do you mean by that?” Makoto asked curiously. 

“I...I don’t know the specifics,” 

Yukari sighed. “My persona has healing abilities. Minako has a plethora of healing abilities. I saw Chidori-san pouring her life force into Junpei, and well….” She turned her face away from them. “I don’t think either me or Minako could watch someone else die for one of us. Specifically Junpei.” 

Minako smiled sadly. “I just didn’t want you to lose her. Not like that, anyway. She revived him and we did the rest.” 

“Not to invalidate your story, but from our understanding, such a thing would be highly improbable, if not impossible.” Yusuke commented, frowning. 

Yukari shrugged. “I don’t know what the ramifications are, and frankly, I don’t care. She’s still alive. We don’t know how, but that’s our best guess. 

“Ahem.” 

Both of them turned to look at Mitsuru, who seemed to have regained herself. “Shall we allow our leader to finish?” 

“Sorry.” Yukari mumbled, looking down. Yusuke said nothing, instead turning his eyes back to the red-eyed speaker. She continued, talking about the days in between, diving in to minor details that only served to paint a better picture. “And then came December...on the second, the Dark Hour was active again. Aigis disappeared one night, and when Fuuka investigated, she found that she was battling with someone on the Moonlight Bridge. We got there, but she was short circuiting. When we went to investigate why, our trail led us to Ryoji. He told us more of what had happened. Ten years prior, he was formed and he and Aigis battled on that same bridge. Aigis knew she couldn’t do anything to stop him, so she sealed Ryoji inside of a little boy standing nearby.” 

“Wait,” Ann’s eyes widened. “Y-you don’t mean….?” 

Minako nodded slowly. “I do. He was sealed in my brother….and I….I had no idea.” 

The looming silence took over the room once more as Minako took a moment to recollect herself. “Ryoji fainted after that, and then he told us more about….the Fall.” 

“I’ve been meaning to ask what that was….” Akira commented, finally finding his voice. 

“The Fall would have been the end of the world, essentially. It would have been brought about by Nyx - the mother of all shadows. And the only way to stop it was to die fighting Nyx. He offered us a solution, though. If we killed him, we’d be just like everyone else - oblivious to what was coming. We didn’t take it.” She took a deep breath, and then began to explain. “I think Minato made up his mind as soon as the meeting was over with. So for that month….we all fought about it and lived in fear, not knowing what would happen. But then the 31st rolled around….and he made his decision. Instead of forgetting, we were all going to die fighting. Over the next month he devised a strategy to get us all in the best shape possible, and then….exactly one month after, we went to fight Nyx.” Minako let out a deep breath, but continued with her explanation. She painted the fight vividly - the air had been cool, but not too cool, thanks to the multitude of Agidynes she was casting. Yukari had played support - well, most of the time. Nyx had changed forms. One detail after the other piled and piled before they led up to the climax as Minako inhaled deeply, evening out her tone. "We won that fight. Everything seemed to be fine." 

Akira bit at his lip. If everything was fine, then why did she look as if she were keeping all of her sunshine contained in a metal box? Minako had always been strong - so strong that he wondered how she'd done it. No matter what, she was always smiling, so casual and full of sunshine. He could never have imagined having to add "chan" or "san" onto the end of her name. She was just...Minako. The older sister he never had. 

But now that he looked, he understood. She was in her mid twenties and still looked to be as lithe as she'd ever been, all arching muscles and gentle features honed into sharp, fine points. Now, instead of her relaxed self, she stood with the moon shining behind her, poised and ready to strike. 

She continued to explain more of the months after Nyx, how she and the man next to her - Akihiko - had begun to date, the new developments at school, anything she could think of. But it was terse, strained, as if it were a rope fraying at the edges and it were about to break.  

"Minato had become more and more lethargic the closer we got to graduation. But, he had promised to meet up with us on the rooftop. So he did. We got up there just in time to see him laying down Aigis's lap, eyes closed. They never opened again."

Her jaw quivered slightly, but her nostrils flared. It was almost as if she were about to stomp and shout “no” at her sadness, ward it off with a sword and a fireball in her hand. “I conducted his wake, and then his funeral - just as he’d done for Mama and Papa. He said that if he were ever to die first,” her voice gave out for a moment. The woman blinked slowly before continuing again, clearing her throat. “He didn’t want a priest, telling everyone how great he’d been. Just someone close to give him a good departing message. So I did. And now he sits on my shrine at home with Mama and Papa. And that’s that.” 

As her voice left the air, the room faded into shocked silence. The silence itself was near deafening. Akira had been clinging to a desperate sort of hope that maybe, after hearing their story, it wouldn't be as bad as he thought. Maybe Minato had just been an asshole and that was why they were sensitive, but as he looked around, that vanished. 

Yukari was already walking away, heading into the hallway. SEES, of course, knew why, and it was no secret among the Investigation Team what they thought - or in some cases, _knew_. 

As if something were pulling everyone along after she left, many stood. They were ready to chase after her, comfort her, but no one was more drawn to her than Ann. Without a second thought, she had walked out after her, leaving everyone confused. 

Akira’s eyes stuck themselves to the rest of SEES, wondering how they could possibly be feeling. Fuuka was almost too close to Shinji, buried in the shadows of the kitchen and smoothing down his shirt as she talked to him. He leaned against her, too, quiet and allowing her to comfort him, arm settled around her.

Minako, on the other hand, had her eyes closed, as if she'd just been knocked on the floor and pain had started lancing through her from the harsh fall. She leaned heavily on the man beside her, resting her head over his heart. In turn, he kept an arm around her shoulders, the other joining their fingers together and dancing around her own, beginning to engage her own in a fight. 

Ken sat close to Nanako as she smiled in that sly way she always did when she was trying to cheer up Ken or Akira. She murmured something to Ken who smothered a smile, shoving her lightly. She giggled quietly. 

The Investigation team looked just as awkward and sad as they felt. No one was sure how long it was before someone broke the silence, but as time progressed, it was clear that someone had to break the silence. And then, just like that, someone spoke and warmth began to leak back into the cabin on the frozen lake. 

"Do you think Yuka-chan is okay?" Minako asked to the air. Her eyes had opened, but they were sad and tired. Akira found himself responding automatically. 

"Probably. Ann's pretty good at cheering people up." 

"Are you sure it isn't just you that she's good at cheering up?" Futaba mumbled under her breath. It was just the jab everyone needed to latch onto, glancing at each other with raised eyebrows. 

The statement did not go unheard by the rest of the room, and caused Akira to smile nervously as more eyes swiveled to him rather than each other. "What's that suppose'ta mean?" Kanji asked, eyebrows furrowed. 

"Oh, you know. They play tongue twister -" 

"Futaba!" Akira squawked. It was involuntary, but somehow, having this makeshift family around while the thieves speculated on what he and Ann did together seemed wrong. 

"What? Why are you so mad? I'm right!" 

"Not so cool around your family, huh Joker?" Ryuji chortled, nudging his friend in the side. Akira's face burned. 

"Anyway, they, you know. Roast the broomstick." Futaba continued.

"We do _not!_ " He objected, voice rising an octave. This was how he went out, wasn't it? He was going to die right here.

"Roast the ...broomstick?" Rise asked, frowning. Her question went unanswered as Kanji spoke up again, finally seeming to get it. 

"Tongue twister….ohh, you mean like they're dating?" 

Futaba shrugged, smiling 'innocently'. "I don't know, why don't you ask him?" 

"Well, Akira?" Nanako chirped, smiling just as innocently as Futaba. "Are you?" 

"I plead the fifth." He said stoically. 

"That doesn't work here, Akira," Nanako cheerfully reminded him. He swore under his breath.

"Sounds like a lie of omission to me." Naoto chimed in, smiling as well. 

"Why don't you ask Ann?"

"Ask me what?" 

Akira's head snapped over to the doorway, where Yukari and Ann now stood, watching them. 

He floundered. "Um, uh, uh, uh…"

"We just want to know if you and Akira are. Y'know. Together." Kanji said. "Hope that isn't a problem."

"Oh, yeah, we are. Is _that_ a problem?" She said, plopping down next to Akira. Her question was almost a challenge to him, something that Yukari seemed to resonate with, if her smile was any indication. 

"Not at all." 

Surprisingly, the statement came from Minako, who was gazing at the both of them. A smile had finally surfaced, seeming to mostly ease the knot of tension in the room. 

"Anyway, I'm...sorry to hear about your leader. It must have been awful." Ann said, empathy echoing in her tone. She was studying Gaia carefully, as if she were taking on their burden by just glancing at the Persona. Gradually, the persona had faded, becoming more and more translucent as time wore on. 

"It was, but all we can really do is move forward, I guess." Minako sighed. It was only then that Gaia disappeared completely, almost smiling as she did so. 

"Still. It must be awful for all of you, on more than one level." Her voice dipped and curved in a way that suggested she knew something, but what no one could tell. 

"I don't think he'd want us to mope too much, right, Yuka-chan?" 

"Right." The smile from earlier had stayed on Yukari’s face had stuck, though it was small.  

"And at least you're not dead, even if your state isn't the best. So that's something to be happy about and celebrate." The female wildcard continued, injecting more positivity in her voice than she felt. 

Akira's lips pulled up, amusement glittering in his eyes. "You just want to throw a party, don't you?" 

Minako matched his amusement with her own, shrugging. "What can I say? I like having everyone in the same room." 

"We can't be in town for much longer, though, Mina." Akihiko pointed out, frowning. 

"Then we'll just do it last minute." She said breezily. "Oh, speaking of a party…. your ...special friends don't know that you're alive, do they?" 

“Special friends?” 

“Um, your social links?” 

"Social…. links?" 

"You know, people in your life that power up your personas." Minako explained, confusing everyone in the room who wasn't a wildcard. It was so casual that even Souji seemed mildly surprised. 

"Oh, you mean my confidants." He said easily. "Didn't think you guys had those, too."

"At least you get a cool name for them," Souji pointed out. "We don't,"

"Go me," Akira said flatly. "But to answer your question, no. They don't." 

"Well, we should probably let them know and invite them." Minako hummed, tapping her chin. 

"You should set a date before that. You're going to have Mitsuru-san pulling out her hair in a minute." Souji said dryly. 

Mitsuru seemed to be noting things on her phone, and hummed at Souji speaking up. "Yes. A date would be helpful, Minako." 

“How about the 27th? It’s a Monday, but I’m sure everyone will have free time after school.” Minako suggested, smiling. 

“Oh, that reminds me, tomorrow’s Thanksgiving ...I should call my parents.” Ann said, frowning to herself. 

“Thanksgiving?” Ryuji asked, raising an eyebrow. “What’s that?” 

Ann opened her mouth to explain, only to be met with Haru’s quick explanation. 

“It’s an American holiday,” Haru supplied. “Workers take the day off to spend time with their families and show their thanks. It started with a banquet between the Europeans and the natives when they started to settle the English colonies that became America.” 

“How’d you know that, Haru?” 

“Oh, um,” She blushed a little, looking down and away. “I began to study overseas holidays after my father passed away. You - you know. For marketing and all of that.” The heiress looked sheepish. 

“Ohh….you’re pretty smart!” Ryuji responded. “It’s good you’re studyin’ stuff like that so you can take over someday. I mean, if you want.” He looked a little pink too, something that caused Akira to nudge his girlfriend in the side, who swatted at him as if to say “ _save it._ ” 

“Then it’s settled!” Minako chirped, bouncing back abruptly at the idea of a party. “We’ll have a Thanksgiving celebration with all of us and Akira's “confidants!””

“I don’t know if everyone will be able to make it, though….” Akira said thoughtfully, chewing on his lip. “I mean, it’s only five days from today.” 

“Oh, that’s alright,” Mitsuru said, waving her hand. “I’ll take special care to rearrange some things.” 

“Wouldn’t that be a little ... suspicious, though?” Chie asked. “Shido’s letting you get away with this, but I don’t know how far we can push our luck.” 

“For all he believes, Akira is actually dead. Aren’t you, Akira?” 

“Yes, ma’am. Dead as a doornail.” 

“Oh, I get what you’re saying.” Yosuke vocalized, a lightbulb going off. “We say that we’re gathered in memorial or whatever, they show up, and we get off free.” 

“Precisely.” Mitsuru nodded, an air of victory about her. “I’ll see to the preparations.” 

Nanako glanced back at the Investigation Team. She bit her lip, almost a bit nervous. "Thanksgiving….that means that Big Bro and Shinjiro are cooking, right?" 

"Well, I want to help-"

Chie had begun to say something, and Yukiko was nodding along, when Yosuke's face contorted. " _No!_ You are not exposing a new generation to Mystery Food X!" 

"Are you ever going to let that go?! It was like four years ago!" Chie barked, glaring up at Yosuke. 

"It doesn't matter! It...was….awful…" 

"It couldn't have been _that_ bad…." Ryuji reasoned, only to have both arguing parties turn to him. 

"Oh, do I have a story for you…." 

* * *

 

"Do you want the window open?" 

From across the room, Ann nodded, carefully tucking her hair into a braid. "You're like a heater, so yeah. It'll get hot in here otherwise." 

"If I weren't so tired, maybe I'd just leave it shut." He said lazily, making Ann flush. 

"Says the one who needed me to bail him out today." She shot back, smiling.

"Well, I didn't want to be questioned about what mini me has been up to." He said, causing Ann to start laughing. 

"What? I'm being serious!" He persisted, smiling with her. 

"There's something mentally wrong with you." She laughed, turning around to face him. 

He made a show of spinning around and blowing her a kiss, winking. "There's a lot wrong with me, _baby."_

The leader of the Phantom Thieves deepened his voice an octave on the last word, making Ann break out in another fit of giggles as she walked across the room to hug him. "You're so wrong." 

"You wouldn't have me any other way." He said cheekily, grinning. 

“You’re right,” she said, stepping in his personal space. “I wouldn’t.” 

Akira draped his arms around her, holding her snug against him. “You smell like roses.” 

“Well, duh, I just took a bath.” 

They lapsed into silence for a moment, both of them finding comfort in the others’ arms as they just stood there, processing the already fleeting details of what they’d heard today. It was a lot. Ann frowned, about to ask a question, when Akira spoke next. 

“Smells nice,” Akira yawned, resting his head on top of hers drowsily. She patted his chest gently, frown turning to a smile

“Bed time?” 

He yawned again, letting her go. “I guess. Join me?” 

“Right after you open that window,” She grinned, slipping away from him. 

“If I must.” 

The two went on with their preparations for bed, each becoming more drowsy by the minute. Eventually, both of them were able to find a comfortable spot on Akira’s bed. That’s when Ann frowned again, glancing to Akira. 

“Hey, Akira?” 

“Mmmm?” He was half asleep, arms circling her and legs tangling with her own. 

“Do you think they liked me?” 

“Loved you…..just like me….night...” He yawned, drawing her back in. Despite all of her worries, she smiled, drawing closer to his chest as she yawned. 

“Goodnight, Akira. Love you too.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh, gosh, it's been a while. And I've got a lot to say about this chapter! 
> 
> So, I'm a bit rusty on my Persona 3 knowledge, so I hope I'm doing them (and their story!) justice. I really do love persona 3 and it's characters (and the Twin AU, oops). I'm really happy we're finally getting through their stories and properly introducing everyone, because now I can really make this more of a "collection" of sorts. Most of all, I'm really, really hoping I do everyone justice. I love these characters so much, it's unreal. 
> 
> I honestly had a lot of trouble balancing the lighthearted moments with the serious and sometimes dramatic attitude of SEES. I mean, how do you go from someone's family dying to laughing at Junpei? It's an odd balance that I hope I portrayed well. 
> 
> And concerning Gaia...I had a lot of trouble on what to do for Minako's ultimate. Ultimately, I think Minako and Minato's designs are so different for a reason other than gender - Minako is a lot sunnier in comparison to her brother - I've generally always thought her to be the sun to Minato's moon, and I think Minako's way of dealing with what happened to Minato would involve living and assuring that other people were able to live their best lives as well. So her persona is Gaia - who's literally mother earth in Greek Mythology. She gave life to literally everything after her. I also think that while she's youthful, Minako carries the capability for motherhood. Gaia's also closely tied to Minako, so that's why she emotes a bit more. 
> 
> Ann's interrogation is coming soon - who knows, Yukari and Rise might just have a special day planned. ;) What happened between Ann and Yukari in the hall will also be clarified later, but I'll let everyone imagine for now. Next chapter will consist of some more building between these characters - not only will we see the main casts interact more, but there are some interesting interactions between friends of friends that I thought I'd have some fun with. 
> 
> Anyway, this chapter was a bit of a struggle, but the last one is sure to be fun to write. Thank you so much for reading! Any kudos, favorites, bookmarks, or anything else you can leave would mean the world - especially any reviews you feel like leaving for me. :)

**Author's Note:**

> Oh dear, where do I even start with this piece?   
> Uh, I got really inspired today while talking to some friends and brainstorming ideas. Originally this didn't have as much Akirann, but I'm a sucker for romance.   
> I love the AU where Akira comes from Inaba and I love the idea of the Investigation Team and SEES just adopting him into their little family. And if something were to happen to a member of their family....you already know that the police would be catching those hands.   
> I feel like Naoto would figure out pretty quick that Akira is involved with the phantom thieves, and that they use something supernatural. It might take a genius to figure out, but then again, what is a persona game without one or two geniuses around?   
> I also decided to use Ann as their temporary leader, not because I hate Makoto or because I'm biased, but if Akira and Makoto were out of commission, and Morgana couldn't be understood by half of the conversation, then Ann's role only makes sense. 
> 
> So those are just some quick thoughts I had! 
> 
> As always, kudos, comments, bookmarks, and whatever else you can think of to show your support are always welcome and highly appreciated!  
> (I'm also thinking about a part 2 to this if it's liked, but I'm not 100% on that yet!)   
> Thank you so much for reading!


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